HMRC is warning people to be wary of bogus tax refund offers following the self
assessment deadline on 31 January.
The tax authority says that fraudsters could set their sights on self assessment
taxpayers, with more than 11.5 million submitting a tax return by last month's
deadline.
HMRC warns that taxpayers who completed their tax return for the 2022/23 tax year
by the 31 January deadline might be taken in by an email, phone call or text
message offering a tax rebate.
These phishing scams are designed to use personal details for selling on to
criminals, or to access people's bank accounts, says HMRC.
The warning comes after HMRC responded to 207,800 referrals from the public of
suspicious contact in the past year to January. This is a 14% increase from the
181,873 reported for the previous 12 months. More than 79,000 of those referrals
offered bogus tax rebates.
Kelly Paterson, HMRC's Chief Security Officer, said:
'With the deadline for tax returns behind us, criminals will now try to trick
people with fake offers of tax rebates.
'Scammers will attempt to dupe people by email, phone or texts that mimic
government messages to make them appear authentic.'
Internet link: HMRC press release