Fraudulent tax return notices sent by email

Fraudulent tax return notices have been emailed to many Irish people over the final days of last year in a bid to get personal information, it has emerged.

The emails, claiming to be from Revenue, inform recipients that they are entitled to a tax return, but must complete an attached form to receive it.

Information technology security company ESET Ireland said it had detected an increased spam run of the emails in recent days.

The company found that a large percentage of Irish email addresses have been targeted by the spam in the last days of 2013.

ESET Ireland discovered that the phishing site that collects victims’ information is linked to a domain registered in the US, but the actual cyber-criminals behind it could be from anywhere.

Revenue has posted a warning about the scam on its website, www.revenue.ie, and has stressed that it never aska customers to send personal information via email or pop-up windows.

“Anyone who receives an email purporting to be from Revenue and suspects it to be fraudulent or a scam should simply delete it,” Revenue advised.

It urges taxpayers awaiting a tax refund to contact their local Revenue office to check its status.

Revenue says anyone who provided personal information in response to the fraudulent emails should contact their bank or credit care company immediately.

ESET Ireland has also pointed out that anyone who receives an email that they are not sure about should not click on the attachment or reply to it.

“If it purports to be from a bank, the tax office, or any other institution, it is always better to ring them first, to make sure they actually sent you something,” it advises.

Meanwhile, a study has found that two thirds of households intend to review their family’s household spending to make savings in the New year.

According to the study by Aviva Health Insurance, the spending review includes all direct debits (43%), the energy supplier (40%), and private health insurance cover (29%).

Almost a third are planning to switch to a bundle offer for internet, television, and telephone.

The study found that more than half of the mothers surveyed have full control of household spending, with fathers more likely to manage spending with their partner.

Almost half of households are planning to make savings by bringing a packed lunch to work, while nearly 15% plan to shop online to more accurately monitor their spending.

Most households plan to shop around for savings, promotions, and discounts.

Households are most intent on finding cheaper groceries (70%), not buying take-away tea or coffee (36%), selling unwanted items online (29%), and not using the car as much to save on petrol (21%).