BEWARE! Heartless “ATO” Threatening Scammers Continue to Harass Australian’s

BEWARE! Don’t get caught out by the latest ‘ATO’ SCAMMERS making threatening calls and sending emails.

 

They are at it again. And their methods are becoming worse and more threatening, and quite frankly …SCARY!

Scammers are calling unsuspecting Australians accusing them of Tax Evasion and Fraud as well as police prosecution and even jail. Don’t be fooled!  Can you believe the scammers have even tried to scam our office!  If you receive a call like this – simply say you will speak to your accountant and HANG UP. You can contact us to verify the legitimacy and if there are any debts owing.

 

NOTE; The ATO will never:

  • threaten you with immediate arrest
  • ask you to pay money to receive a refund or payment from us
  • ask you to pay a debt via iTunes vouchers, or pre-paid credit card or store gift cards
  • ask you to provide personal information, such as your tax file number (TFN) or credit card number, via email or SMS
  • ask you to pay money into a personal bank account
  • direct you to download files from the internet, or open attachments in unsolicited emails.

Phone Scammers becoming sneakier:

From time to time the ATO may contact you by phone. But you should be wary of unsolicited phone calls claiming to be from the ATO. These may offer you a tax refund or tell you that you have a tax debt and threaten you with arrest.

We are now seeing these scams using the names and addresses of actual ATO officers and buildings. Be careful if you receive a phone call like this.

If you are in doubt about the authenticity of a call that you receive claiming to be from the ATO, you can call the ATO on 1800 008 540 to verify. Or call our Team at The A Firm on 07 5596 4604 (Nerang) or 07 3829 0792 (Redland Bay).

To find out more about current scams – see here https://www.ato.gov.au/General/Online-services/Identity-security/Verify-or-report-a-scam/

Just remember, be cautious, and call us if ever in doubt. We are here to help you and protect you!