Government warns of ‘malicious’ myGov scammers
Stay Alert to Protect Your ATO Log-In Details from Scammers Government Warns of Rising Tax Fraud via Fake myGov Sites and Urges Vigilance The Government has urged Australians to be vigilant regarding scammers who target ATO log-in details to commit tax fraud. The ATO has received a large number of reports of scammers using fake […]
Illegal early access to super
Beware of Illegal Early Super Access Schemes ATO Warns Against Promoters Exploiting Super Funds for Non-Retirement Purposes Faced with tough times, some people may be thinking about accessing their super early. Taxpayers may have been approached by someone (a ‘promoter’) claiming that members of super funds can withdraw their super or use an SMSF to […]
ATO issues warning about false invoicing arrangements
SFCT Alert: Beware of Illegal Financial Schemes Businesses Warned Against False Invoicing Tactics to Evade Taxes and Super Obligations The Serious Financial Crime Taskforce (‘SFCT’) is warning businesses about using illegal financial arrangements such as ‘false invoicing’ to cheat the tax and super systems. False invoicing arrangements may consist of the following: an entity (the […]
Beware of scams
Scamwatch is warning of the cost of scams Australian consumers, businesses and the economy lose hundreds of millions of dollars each year and suffer serious emotional harm to victims and their families as a result of scams. Cryptocurrency scams are the most ‘popular’ type of investment scams, representing over 50% of losses. Often the initial […]
Warning regarding new illegal retirement planning scheme
The ATO recently identified a new illegal retirement planning scheme SMSF trustees were informed that they could set up a new SMSF to roll-over the fund balance from the old SMSF and then liquidate their old SMSF, in an attempt to avoid paying potential tax liabilities. The ATO warns that taking part in this arrangement […]
Natural disaster SMS scam
SMS scam targeting natural disaster victims The ATO is warning the community about a new SMS scam which promises an 8% bonus on 2020 tax returns to victims of recent natural disasters. The scam text message says: “Due to natural disasters, Australians are entitled to an 8% bonus on their tax return. Please begin the […]
July 2019 ATO impersonation scam report
ATO impersonation scam update Unbelievably, scammers are still successfully bilking Australians out of tens of thousands of dollars, as a recent ATO scam report shows. According to the July 2019 ATO impersonation scam report: 6,179 online scam reports were received in the first month of their new online reporting form going live; 6,645 phone scam […]
Robocall technology targets taxpayers
Scammers impersonate ATO phone numbers The ATO is warning that scammers have adopted ‘Robocall’ technology to target taxpayers across the country. Assistant Commissioner Gavin Siebert said: “Scammers are sending pre-recorded messages in record numbers and are manipulating caller identification so that your phone displays a legitimate ATO phone number despite coming from an overseas scammer”. […]
Latest ATO scam warning
Tax scammer alert The ATO has again warned taxpayers to be alert for scammers impersonating the ATO, as it appears they have changed tactics in 2019. Specifically, the ATO is seeing the emergence of a new tactic where: “scammers are using an ATO number to send fraudulent SMS messages to taxpayers asking them to click […]
Beware of fake tax debt scam
Scammers impersonating tax agents The ATO has received increasing reports of a new take on the ‘fake tax debt’ scam, whereby scammers are now impersonating registered tax agents to lend legitimacy to their phone call. The fraudsters do this by coercing the victim into revealing their agent’s name and then initiating a three-way phone conversation […]
