New Zealand hit with record number of tax refund scams.

The New Zealand Government released new figures highlighting the constant problem of phishing techniques tailored to collect information about individuals for financial gain.

A record 83,000 scam emails offering fake tax refunds were reported to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) in September. The online attacks, known as ‘phishing’, have continued this month, with an unprecedented 10,000 reports of the fraud made to HMRC on one day alone.

The press release goes on to show how the scam continues unabated:

The scam email tells the recipient they are due a tax refund and then asks for bank account or credit card details. Anyone who gives these details to the fraudsters risks their bank accounts being emptied and credit cards maxed to their limit. The victim also risks having their personal details sold on to other criminal gangs. The latest version of this scam originates from various different websites, which operate for 20 minutes before changing their domain name.

It’s pretty wild that a con artist would use the tax department to get your money. I had to grin and believe that, the citizens rarely get refunds, because they are reporting the scam to the government. I don’t think even Al Capone would try to use the government’s tax department as a source of information to start a fraud! How times have changed!