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The usual maxim goes that, in life, two things are inevitable — death and taxes.
However, it can easily be argued that, when tax time rolls around, tax scams are sadly just as inevitable — but there are, in fact, ways you can avoid them.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reported that last year, Australians lost over $3 billion to scams and scammers, and tax time is a peak season for criminals to take advantage.
There are three main ways scammers operate to take advantage of this time of year: through tax-related identity theft, posing as fake tax specialists and accountants, or pretending to represent the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
Keeping your tax file number secure is one way to avoid identity theft at tax time, including shredding any documents that may list it before disposing of them.
If you suspect your accountant may not be above board, you can check that they are registered with the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB). When working with a tax practitioner, you should also never share your MyGov login details, and enabling two-factor authentication on your MyGov account is another step you can take.
Finally, there are usually a number of giveaways when someone is trying to impersonate the ATO, or any other agency. The Tax Office will not threaten you with arrest or the cancellation of your tax file number. Trust only official social media accounts with appropriately high follower accounts and official verification. And never click on any links that require direct payments via SMS or email.
“There are certain times each year that pique cyber criminals’ interest, and tax time is one of them,” said Mark Gorrie, APAC managing director at security firm Norton. “With the amount of personal and financial information that is being stored and shared at this time, coupled with the stress that comes with filing tax returns, it is the perfect storm for scammers to target Australians.”
“In the wake of greater sophistication and a rise in AI that is aiding cyber criminals in evolving and developing their devious tactics, it is more important than ever that Australians continue to educate themselves on the warning signs.”
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.
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