TENTERFIELD residents have been advised to not release their personal details after reports of a recent bout of illicit phone calls allegedly made on behalf of the Australian Tax Office.
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Margaret Maher approached the Star last week and reported she had been contacted by an international caller between 1pm and 2pm, who alleged to have $7,600 in uncollected tax rebates from the ATO.
Mrs Maher said she was provided with a reference number and advised to call a NSW phone number (02) 6100 3872 and provide her banking details so the funds could be transferred.
Mrs Maher said she consulted her accounting services who advised her to ignore the call.
Fellow Tenterfield resident Jean McCabe said she was surprised to receive an email claiming to be from the ATO.
“They said I had $814 owing to me – but I haven’t paid taxes in donkey’s years so I knew it wasn’t right."
- Jean McCabe
The email, which included the Australian Government’s ATO logo in the top right corner, included a link to complete the tax refund form.
“We have worked hard to determinate as accurately as possible the tax refunds that our citizens should receive. As a result, our calculations regarding your past year taxes tell us that we have to refund you $814.00 AUD,” the email reads.
It suggests a payment method and says the refund should be processed in 12 working days.
She said she knew of other people who had been contacted via email and over the phone.
“It’s a concern because a lot of people can get sucked in by these things,” she said.
Residents are urged to beware of phone scams, with online forums reporting similar experiences throughout August, and to avoid taking unsolicited calls and to not release personal or banking information.
