Fake ATO Scams

We have recently been receiving a few reports of fraudulent calls made by people who claim they’re from the ATO.

A few of these fake ATO scammers have even called our offices.

This article is simply to inform you of what to look out for should you get a call from “the ATO” which can hopefully protect you from these impersonation scams.

Be wary if you get a call from:

• A person saying a complaint has been made against you and you are committing tax fraud or claim that you have to pay a debt that you know nothing about.
• Someone threatening to immediately arrest you or bring you to court if you don't call them back or pay straight away.
• A person that will not provide explanations or allow you to ask questions about the debt and often get aggressive or abusive.
• A person asking you to pay using unusual methods of payment that the ATO does not use such as iTunes, Bitcoin cryptocurrency, store gift cards, or pre-paid visa cards.
• Someone offering you a tax refund, but, you have to provide a personal credit card number for the funds to be deposited into. They don’t deposit money but instead steal funds from these cards without the knowledge of the cardholder. The ATO does not issue refunds to credit cards.

That is why it is important to know the real status of your tax affairs such as details of debts owed, refunds due and lodgements outstanding, etc. If you get one of these calls, simply hang up and call the ATO directly on 1800 008 540 to check if the call was legitimate, or to report it.

“It’s important to share Scam News Alerts such as this one. We’ve unfortunately had a client losing money over this scam and we should all try our bit to reach out to the broader community with the alert and stop more, often vulnerable, people falling victim of it.

Good on you Anne for looking after the seniors and advocating against abuses to them. Please let me know I can contribute more to this good cause / in this space”.

You can also call us, and we will be happy to assist.
Best regards,

CINDY SU
Managing Partner
Chan & Naylor Pymble
Tel: (02) 9391 5000
Fax: (02) 9391 5050
Suite 5, Level 2, 5 Grandview Street, Pymble, NSW 2073