The ATO is reminding taxpayers to think carefully to avoid giving money or personal details to scammers this tax time.
Between July and October last year more than 48,000 scams were reported to the ATO.
This year ATO has had over 17,000 scam reports and they expect a lot more as we head into tax time.
Assistant Commissioner Kath Anderson in June , “The sad thing is, we know of more than 100 people who handed more $1.5 million to fraudsters. As well as that more, over 2500 people gave out some of their personal information.”
“ over the course of several months, even borrowing money from family and friends.
“The large number of people lodging their tax returns means scammers are particularly active, so it’s important to keep an eye out for anything that looks suspicious and protect your private information.”
She also said, “The scammers are clever; lately they’ve been imitating genuine ATO phone numbers and projecting them on to caller IDs. It’s spoofing and it’s designed to make you think they are the ATO.”
On Tuesday, Consumer Affairs Victoria posted a recording on their Twitter account, of one phone scam to warn potential victims.
NSW Police too issued a warning saying that if someone was saying they were from ATO and were threatening you with an arrest, don’t fall for it.
ATO says the best way to protect yourself is to be alert and weary of any emails, phone calls and SMS that claim to be from the ATO.
Protect your private information and remember the ATO will never threaten you with arrest or use abusive language.
If you can’t tell whether it’s a scam or you think you’ve been a victim, call the ATO on 1800 008 540. You can also go to ato.gov.au and search for scams.
