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Wellington, July 21, 2018
A sophisticated email scam is doing the rounds using Inland Revenue Department (IRD) branding to trick people into giving up their credit card details.
The email usually claims that the recipient is due a large tax refund and then asks them to click on a link to another website where their money can supposedly be claimed.
Convincing appearance
IRD Chief Information Security Officer Doug Hammond said that the email looks very convincing but there are a couple of important details that give their game away.
“Firstly, look where the email is from. If it doesn’t come from an address that ends with ird.govt.nz then be very suspicious. Secondly, look at the link where they are trying to direct people to claim the refund. Hover over the link with your mouse and make sure the web address is for a real Inland Revenue website. Don’t click on it. We send out emails all the time but customers should be aware what a fraudulent one looks like,” he said.
Notify IRD
Anyone who receives an email they’re not sure about should notify Inland Revenue at phishing@ird.govt.nz.
Mr Hammond said this particular scam has been quite prevalent lately and IRD has received around 700 notifications about it in the past week.
“The same scammers look to be making multiple attempts to lure unsuspecting customers and have been using the same messaging sent from a number of email addresses. We would never send anyone an email with a hyperlink to a webpage that asks you to submit your personal information so be vigilant about any correspondence with those instructions,” he said.
If you have clicked on the form and submitted any personal or credit card data, please contact your bank immediately.
Please contact IDcare (http://www.idcare.org or Phone 0800-201415).
Read more tips about how to identify a scammer here and here.
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