Fraudulent emails are circulating which pretend to be from the Australian Tax Office. Using social engineering tricks the criminals behind these emails try to trick you into providing personal information as a pretext to receiving a tax refund. This personal information can be used by the criminals to steal your identity.
The subject of the email may contain wording the same as, or similar to:
E-tax 2012
The from line of the email may contain wording the same as, or similar to: e-tax@ato.com This is a scam.
The emails may include links to web sites that attempt to trick you into supplying personal details, such as your name, date of birth and credit card details (in order to receive the fake refund).
Providing the information requested is likely to mean that your personal and/or business information may be accessed for fraudulent or illegal purposes.
As the end of the financial year approaches it is likely there will be an increase in scams similar to this.
What we recommend you do
If you receive an email similar to this one, do not reply or click on the links in the email.
If you have provided personal information that includes your credit card or bank account information in response to an email request regarding this matter, the information you supplied has been captured by a criminal. Please notify your bank and the Australian Taxation Office www.ato.gov.au
This Alert has been prepared by AusCERT for the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy.
