It’s a shameful thing to admit, I know, but when I’m not writing garbage for this blog, I work as an accountant and tax agent. I know, I know… but we all have a darker side, one that we prefer not to talk about.
But tonight I had an e-mail — it said it was from HM Revenue & Customs — headed up with the words “Tax Refund Notification “. It seemed to come from an e-mail address taxrefund@businesslink.gov.uk. and advising me as follows:
After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity, we have determined you are eligible to receive a tax refund of £1382.49 GBP. Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 2-3 days in order to process it.
Click Here to submit your tax refund request.
Note: A refund can be delayed for variety of reasons, for example submitting invalid records or applying after deadline.
Best Regards
HM Revenue & Customs
Oh whoopee! Lots of lovely lolly for yours truly.
Except that clicking on the word Here takes you to this site: http://agriculturaepecuaria.com.br/joomla/images/stories/revenue/hmrc/hmrc/refundportal.htm where you are presented with a screenful of Bank Logos. There’s one for Barclays, one for Lloyds, one for HSBC, etc etc etc…
You are invited to click on the one representing your bank. Want to guess what’s next? After choosing your bank, you are taken to an official looking page, where you are instructed to give them all your bank details. There are even the usual warnings about on-line scams!
You then wait the two to three days, or even more, while you make lists of things to spend your refund on, before finding out that your bank account is mysteriously empty! Oh no!
After I stopped laughing at the amateurishness of this phishing scam — for that is what it is — I thought I’d put it up on the blog, because there are those out there who won’t recognise it for a scam.
If you get one of these in your in-box — just press delete. It IS too good to be true.
UPDATE – - – UPDATE – - – UPDATE – - – UPDATE
Further investigation reveals this e-mail originates in Russia. It is believed that HM Revenue & Customs do not have any branches in that country.