HMRC warns of email scam

Date: 4th February 2011

Small business owners and other taxpayers have been advised to be wary of a new phishing scam.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has warned taxpayers that following the January 31st deadline for tax returns, cybercriminals are attempting to con people via email.

According to the department, an email is being sent out informing recipients that they are due a tax rebate.

The email provides a link to a fake HMRC website and asks people to provide their credit card details.

Chris Hopson, director of customer contact at HMRC, said: "As a matter of policy, HMRC will only ever contact customers who are due a tax refund in writing by post.

"If anyone receives an email offering a tax rebate claiming to be from HMRC, we recommend they send it to phishing@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk before deleting it permanently."

In the last 18 months alone, HMRC has shut down scam networks in a number of countries including Austria, Mexico, the UK, South Korea, the USA, Thailand and Japan.

Posted by Emily Smith