Scammers impersonate ATO in cunning new online scam

Fraudsters are now trying a new tactics to scam Australians, with officials warning online criminals have now found a way to pose as the Australian Taxation Office.

Australians who seek help from the tax office are being targeted by a new “insidious” scam prompting an urgent warning to ensure people don’t have their money or identity stolen.

The federal government has sounded the alarm about a new scam where fraudsters impersonate tax office workers on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms to dupe Australians out of their cash and personal information.

The criminals scan public conversations on social media where taxpayers ask questions or make complaints about the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) online.

The fraudsters then hijack the conversation using a fake ATO profile, contacting the member of the public directly with an offer to help resolve a complaint or follow up on a comment.

After earning their trust, the scammer asks them to click on a link or provide personal details.

Australians are being targeted in a new ATO dupe.

Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said the fake accounts could be “extremely convincing,” which was what made this new scam so “insidious”.

“The tax office will never ask for personal information over social media and never send links that ask you to fill out your personal information like your tax file number, myGov log in or bank account details,” he said.

Stephen Jones MP, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services. Picture: Britta Campion

“The government is urging people to exercise extreme caution in their social media interactions.”

The ATO is working with social media platforms and other government agencies to help remove the damaging interactions.

Australians are being urged to check information the ATO publishes regular on how to identify and report scams as the “best defence” against the criminals was “community awareness”.

This month a Victorian man was charged over his involvement in the elaborate “Hi Mum” text scam, which has stolen millions of dollars from Australian victims.

Under the scam, victims were contacted by a scammer posing as their child claiming they have lost or damaged their phone and are making contact from a new number, or a friend’s phone.

They would then ask for money to help them urgently pay for transport, pay for a bill, or replace the phone.

More than 1150 Australians lost $2.6 million to the “Hi Mum” scam in the first seven months of last year.

Originally published as Scammers impersonate ATO in cunning new online scam