ATO scam that Australians need to know about trends now Urgent warning over cruel new ATO scam that's very hard to detect: Here's how to make sure you don't get caught out Criminals are infiltrating ATO Facebook page They are pretending to be tax office reps The ATO never asks for personal information on Facebook By Peter Vincent For Daily Mail Australia Published: 23:34 GMT, 22 January 2023 | Updated: 23:36 GMT, 22 January 2023 Viewcomments Australians have been warned to be on high alert for a devious scam where criminals are impersonating Australian Tax Office (ATO) workers. The federal government has sounded the alarm that fraudsters are pretending to be tax office agents on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms to gain access to people's information. The fraud begins when scammers sneak into the comments sections of the tax office's Facebook page. Using faked ATO profiles they then directly contact the taxpayers who have complained or asked questions, offering to resolve their issues. Having won their trust, the criminals ask taxpayers to click on a link which asks for personal information. Australians have been warned to be on high alert for a devious scam in which criminals are impersonating the Australian Tax Office The ATO posted a video to its Facebook page explaining one important difference between its posts and messages from scammers on fake ATO profiles - the dodgy ones are mising a verification tick The ATO posted a video to its Facebook page explaining one important difference between its posts and messages from scammers on fake ATO profiles. The fraudulent profiles don't have Facebook's official blue verification tick next to the sender's title. The cruel trick is the latest in a growing list of ATO frauds cyberthieves are continually attempting. Others include fake messages about tax refunds, tax debts and superannuation What to do about fake ATO messages The ATO says if you receive what you believe to be a fake call, email or message, do not reply. Instead report it to the ATO on 1800 008 540. The ATO points out that faked ATO profiles and accounts do not carry an official blue verification tick - so look out for it. The tax office will never ask for personal information over social media. It will never send links that ask you to fill out your personal information like your tax file number, myGov log in or bank account details. Advertisement Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones described the scam as 'insidious' because of how convincing the faked ATO profiles are. He said Australians must exercise 'extreme caution' when engaging with the ATO on social media. Mr Jones clarified how people could protect themselves against fake ATO scams. 'The tax office will never ask for personal information over social media and never send links that ask you to fill out your personal information like your tax file number, myGov log in or bank account details,' he said. Scammers have faked ATO communications for several years now as they try to trick the public. Among the scams include dodgy tax refund SMS messages, fake tax lodgement emails, phone and email scams related to superannuation and bullying calls threatening legal action if a tax debt is not paid immediately. The ATO urges anyone who believes they've received a fake ATO phone call, SMS, voicemail or email do not reply to it. Instead, you should either: phone the ATO on 1800 008 540 go to the tax office's verify or report a scam page to see how to spot and report a scam. Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility