Industry News Home More stories like this... RSS Feed

Consumers warned of tax-related phishing scam

Internet users have been warned to watch out for a phishing scam being run by cyber crooks in relation to recently announced tax cuts.

Emails purporting to be from the 'UK Government & Ministry of Finance' have been intercepted by an online security firm, which says they offer to return tax to "every man aged between 30 and 55 years".

However, those who fall for the scam risk exposing themselves to ID theft and online fraud as the emails, which offer to pay £450 - 650 for "family maintenance" have a catch, says Sophos.

The emails redirect to "a webpage that asks for information, such as age, marital status and number of children, which could then be used by fraudsters to build identity profiles", says the firm.

"This campaign, coming in the run-up to Christmas, also takes advantage of the trend for special-offers and vouchers to be circulated via email," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos.

"Computer users should do their best to stay mindful of the risks."

Tax incentives were announced earlier in the week in a pre-budget report.

Safeguard your account numbers and passwords against identity theft. Visit www.pctools.com to upgrade your protection