Scam or not

[Davepatrol]

Has anyone had this turn up in their Emails.
Dear Taxpayer,

*Refund Amount : 318.84 AUD

>> Your *Refund Reference Number is: Ref/150122/2014 <<

NOTE: If you've received an Income Tax 'repayment' it will either be following a claim you've made or becouse ATO ( Australian Taxation Office ) has received new information about your taxable income or entitlement to allowances. The refund may come through your tax code or as a payment and could relate to the current tax year or earlier years.

CLICK HERE to submit your tax refund request

Thank you, ATO Australian Taxation
I would sway because they didn't use my name and spelling mistake it would be a scam.
Cheers Dave

[Bird]

scam..

we had several of that email today at work.. stupid ****ers CC'ed 20 people at work here with the same email and amount of refund....

I also got 2 snail mails yesterday from Spain telling me I'd inherited 6million something UKP from a rich rello who never existed really that lived in spain... they were holding it in trust for me.. 

[bobnrob]

Look up the ATO's phone# from a genuine source and ask 'em!

But betting my left AND right nad that's it's phooey 

[Bird]

Look up the ATO's phone# from a genuine source and ask 'em!

yea look it up on the interwebs   

[KingBilly]

Scam

KB

[cloakle]

scam been getting them for a while, I don't even open them

[tk421]

scam - clicking the link would be a bad idea, or it might just be a phishing email to get tax file or credit card details.

[#jonesy]

Scam,
but one of the smarter ones.  $318.84 sounds more realistic that $3million.
Except for the spelling errors, "tax code" and a few other errors.

Apart from that why would the tax office chase you to give you money back and then ask you to apply.

Other trick is to look at the senders email address, in particular the country codes.

[WilSurf]

I also got 2 snail mails yesterday from Spain telling me I'd inherited 6million something UKP from a rich rello who never existed really that lived in spain... they were holding it in trust for me.. 

Had that one a few years back.

[Davepatrol]

It is definitely a scam, But when you click on the link it takes you to a site that looks for all intent to be the ATO and asks you to pick your bank,  but only gives the choice of the big 4 banks and no other choice. The ATO site looks real so this was just a heads up to be careful on what you  open and fill out.

[Green rv]

scam i also had that one about 2 weeks ago

mate i should be a multi millionaire with the amount of fake people wanting to leave me money 


Ads

[WilSurf]

Wow, I am getting rich. 

I received 2 emails last night, informing me from 2 different addresses that they have an account waiting for me.
One account has USD$15M, the other has USD$14.8.

Dilemma, which one do I reply to?

[BaseCamp]

scam -

[WilSurf]

scam -

But, but, USD$15M...................?

[briann532]

Mate it's not a scam.
Its real.
I work for them. 

I have a few inside secrets I can help you with. Maybe even triple your return.
Just send me $25.00 and I'll tell you how..........................................................

[Dingo0163]

It's a scam. The ATO will not contact you by email. 

[speewa158]

l have the answer to all this Crap  , sadly its a scam that can easily be reviled . Send me 2 Slabs of Cold VB cans & l will explain the depth that some will stoop to .                         

[Ash1]

SCAM!

[KingBilly]

Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network

http://www.acorn.gov.au

Refer 20 people a week

KB

[Green rv]

havent had this one before
come with a notice to pay but did not open that as it was a zip file

Notice to Appear,

You have not paid for driving on a toll road.
Please, do not forget to service your debt.

The copy of the invoice is attached to this email.

Sincerely,
Ben Perkins,
E-ZPass Manager.

[WilSurf]

Why is it so obvious and still people are falling for it.

[Trailer Bloke]

Scam they had a story on today tonight about it

[scblack]

Scam.

As Dingo said earlier, ATO do NOT send communication by email.

[gronk]

I've had 2 phone calls from someone ( sounds Indian ) from the ATO saying I have a problem and I will be fined if I don't take immediate action.....when I ask for name and a reference number, they hang up ??

[Goose]

I've had 2 phone calls from someone ( sounds Indian ) from the ATO saying I have a problem and I will be fined if I don't take immediate action.....when I ask for name and a reference number, they hang up ??

From the ATO website. Sounds like you got scam #2.



Phone scams

From time to time we may contact you by phone, but you should be wary of unsolicited phone calls claiming to be from the ATO and offering you a tax refund. Increasingly, we are seeing these scams using names and addresses that have some correlation to actual ATO officers and buildings. We advise taxpayers to be vigilant when receiving phone calls of this nature.

If in doubt about the authenticity of a call that you receive from the ATO, you can call us on phone us 13 28 61.

Below are examples of recent phone scams.

Example 1

You receive a call from a person saying they are from the ATO. The person may say a letter has been sent to advise you of this phone call, and that the call is to discuss a scheme to reduce your tax for retirement. The person will say they are going to send someone around to discuss your situation and ask questions about your occupation, your assets or whether you have a financial planner or accountant. They may already know your address.
No contact information or reference number is provided.

Key indicators of this scam:

Cold calling (unsolicited calls)
The caller may be pushy to book an appointment, and advise that there are ATO representatives in your neighbourhood now
You are asked questions about your financial situation and other personal information that could be used to steal your identity
The caller advises of 'schemes' to help reduce your tax and offers to provide financial advice.

Example 2

You are called on either your private home or mobile number by a person claiming to be from the ATO. You are told that due to 'errors' on your tax return, a warrant has been issued for your arrest and the police will be called unless you attend the local post office and make an immediate payment. A variation of this scam asks you to purchase a 'Load and Go' card.

Key indicators of this scam:

Cold calling (unsolicited call)
You are advised that there is a warrant for your arrest
The callers use an aggressive tone
You are asked to make a payment without having received any prior advice or correspondence from the ATO
You are asked to make a payment without being provided with a personal payment slip.

Example 3

You are called on either your private home or mobile number by a person claiming to be from the ATO. They say that you have been chosen to receive a business grant from the federal government (amount can vary). You are told you need to phone a specific number straight away to organise the process to collect the grant.

Key indicators of this scam:

Cold calling (unsolicited calls).
The caller advises that you have been chosen for a business grant.
You are asked to phone to organise the collection of the grant. When phoning, you will likely be asked for personal information, including financial details, or requested to pay an amount to have the money released. You may also be asked to provide other personal information that could be used to steal your identity.
The caller provides details which may be similar to actual ATO officer details or addresses – however, the street name may be spelt incorrectly, or the wrong postcode is provided with the address.

Example 4

You are called on either your private home or mobile number by a person claiming to be from the ATO. They say that you are owed a tax refund of around $3,000 (could be any amount) and that you need to make a money transfer to an Indian orphanage or other charity of around $150 in order to receive your refund.

Generally, they provide a NSW phone number to contact the 'ATO' once you have completed the transfer. The scammers sometimes quote personal information, such as address and date of birth, during the conversation to show authenticity, and also often have several private contact numbers for you.

Key indicators of this scam:

Cold calling (unsolicited calls)
The caller advises that you have an unclaimed refund
You are asked to pay a sum of money to a third party in order to receive the refund
The payment must be made through a money transfer
The return phone number is a NSW number rather than a national 1300 number.

Example 5

You receive a call from a person saying that they are from 'The Tax Office's Australian Government Grants Department'. The person asks to clarify your name and address and says you will receive a cheque for $5,200, hand delivered the next day. In order to get this cheque, you need to call a phone number to confirm eligibility.

Key indicators of this scam:

Cold calling (unsolicited calls)
The caller advises that you will receive this money as they have 'unclaimed taxes' and/or they 'pay tax frequently'
All the call centre operatives refer to themselves as 'Harry'
You call the number provided and are asked to go to Australia Post and complete a 'Yellow Form' (presumably an International Money order) and call them back to provide a 10-digit confirmation number from the form
You must attach $99 and address the form to 'Australian Government - Veerendra Kumar, Bareilly, India'.