306,000 reports of phone scams
HMRC indicate that they have received more than 306,000 reports about phone scams in the last year, up 47%. The department responded to over 846,000 public referrals of suspicious HMRC contact in total. Nearly 496,000 of these offered bogus tax rebates, as a way of stealing personal data.
496,000 reported bogus tax rebate contacts
Many scams mimic government messages as a way of appearing authentic and unthreatening.
HMRC advice is: if you can’t verify the identity of the caller, do not speak to them.
If someone calls, emails or texts claiming to be from HMRC, saying that members can claim financial help, are due a tax refund or owe tax, or asks for bank details, it might be a scam.
Check GOV.UK for our scams checklist, find out how to report tax scams on GOV.UK and get information on how to recognise genuine HMRC contact.
PAYadvice.UK 20/1/2021
