Be aware of new ATO scam: Federal government

The federal government is warning taxpayers to beware of an insidious new scam on social media.

Fraudsters impersonating tax office workers on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms are duping Australians out of their money and personal information.

They begin by scanning public conversations on social media where taxpayers ask questions or make complaints about the ATO.

They 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.

An example of a scammer impersonating to be the ATO.

The legitimate post from the ATO.

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

The best defence against such scams is community awareness. The ATO regularly publishes information and advice on its social media and web pages on how to identify and report these scams.

Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said fake tax officer accounts on Twitter and Facebook can be extremely convincing, which is what makes this 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.

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