Beware of Scammers
The ATO is always issueing alerts on the latest scams as soon as it can. In the case of anything suspicious it is always worth checking with your accountant or the ATO first. In the case of contacting the ATO, it is best to look the number up yourself rather than assume a number left is correct as it may be a scammer.
Thousands of people this year have been caught out by scammers pretending to be the ATO, generally being forceful and threatening with criminal charges. However there are some things that are not practices of the ATO worth being aware of:
- The ATO will never threaten with arrest;
-Refuse to allow you to speak to your regular accountant;
-Present a coll ID phone number; or
-Demand payment through unusual means (ie Bitcoin) or immediately.
Scammers have been spoofing the caller ID in particular to look convincing as noted by the ATO. They sometimes even intentionally hang up early to make it a missed call, so you may check who the number is in this case and be more convinced it is the ATO.
Emails have similar tell tail signs to calls that the ATO never does as the above worth noting as well, but when in doubt we are always hear to clarify with you.
Keeping safe is easy, though it always helps to be aware.
