Ian Moore / Mashable
The end goal for scammers is to end up with someone else’s money, one way or another. If you don’t want them to steal yours, get familiar with the following types of scams….Story continues…
By: Rebecca Ruiz
Source: Mashable
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Critics:
Tax refund organisations may not be unscrupulous or do anything wrong. You might wish to use a tax refund company and pay a fee to them to help you claim a refund, particularly if you do not understand or have time to do the paperwork yourself. Every tax investigation starts with a brown envelope marked ‘HMRC’ falling through your letterbox. Your company records will face varying degrees of scrutiny, depending on the reason the investigation has been launched.
One way to check if a number is potentially a scam is to use a reverse phone number lookup service. These websites and apps allow you to enter a number and see public information associated with it, such as the registered name, location, and carrier. You should receive a tax calculation letter known as a P800 at the end of every tax year, which should inform you of any refunds you are eligible for. You could receive your refund within five working days, but you could also receive a cheque within six weeks of receiving your letter.
Check the email greeting. If the email is addressed “Dear Customer” and not your name, it could be a bogus tax refund email. If your P800 calculation states that you can claim your tax refund online, then usually you can go into your Personal Tax Account (PTA) or the HMRC app and ask HMRC to pay it directly into your bank account via BACS. Or you can contact HMRC by telephone and ask them to send you a cheque.
If HMRC think you have overpaid tax, they will send you a repayment of tax automatically – you do not need to make a claim. If HMRC think you have not paid enough tax, they will write to you explaining that they intend to collect the underpaid tax through your tax code or telling you how you can repay it to them. Financial institution notices will not require taxpayer or tax tribunal permission, although HMRC argues there will be safeguards: the information must be fairly required.
HMRC do legitimately call people about outstanding tax bills and do use automated messages, but they will always include your unique tax reference number. If you are in ANY doubt about the veracity of any communication you get from HMRC, please don’t hesitate to bring it to the attention of your accounting team.
- A claim that you have been specially selected.
- Use of high-pressure sales tactics and “limited-time” offers.
- Reluctance to answer questions about the business or the offer.
- Request that you “confirm your personal information”
HMRC can request to view data held by telecommunications operators and providers. This could include the time, duration and location of any phone call made. HMRC can also request to view the number dialled. Additionally, HMRC can ask internet providers to provide data on which websites an individual has looked at. Your phone can’t be hacked from your number alone, although there are some zero-click attacks that can install malware even if you don’t answer a call or click a text.
Usually, to hack a phone, scammers need targets to take some action, like clicking a malicious link or downloading an infected app. Your phone can’t be hacked just with a regular call — but phone hackers can use fake text messages to infect your phone, and suspicious no caller ID calls may be part of a wider ploy to access your device.
On average, tax audits can be expected every five years or so, while only a few per cent of income tax and corporation tax returns are investigated each year. But the frequency of tax audits and the likelihood of in-depth tax investigations increases if HMRC suspects that tax is being underpaid. Financial institution notices will not require taxpayer or tax tribunal permission, although HMRC argues there will be safeguards: the information must be fairly required.
HMRC is aware of an automated phone call scam which will tell you HMRC is filing a lawsuit against you, and to press 1 to speak to a caseworker to make a payment. This is a scam and you should end the call immediately. The easiest way to become a victim of a bank scam is to share your banking info — e.g., account numbers, PIN codes, social security number — with someone you don’t know well and trust. If someone asks for sensitive banking details, proceed with caution.
Any unusual activity in your tax records or accounts could flag you up for an HMRC tax compliance check. Most checks are triggered by HMRC’s Central Risk team, who use sophisticated data mining tools to spot unusual activity on accounts or trends in particular industries. HMRC takes tax enforcement very seriously and may apply for an account freezing order immediately upon suspicion of tax evasion and without notice to the account holder.
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