Deceiver of Revenue warning

A ZULULAND Observer employee this week received the marvelous news, via e-mail, that SARS has generously decided to reimburse her with R15 250,75.

In order to receive the handsome payback, she was urged to post all her details including her name, identity number, cellular number, card number, last three digits on the back of the card and expiry date to the ‘Receiver of Revenue e-filing address.’

‘Tom Moyane Commissioner of SARS’ explains in his mail, ‘After calculations of last year annual fiscal activities, we realised you are eligible to receive a Tax refund of R9,250.75.’

Seemingly between the e-mail subject line and the explanation, the employee was taxed on her refund, hence the difference between the R15 250,75 she had in her pocket when she started reading and the R9 250 and some cents she had a few lines down.

‘Moyana’ then requests her to ‘Please download the attached Tax refund form REFUNDSARS.html and complete the process of your Tax refund.’

Phishing

But the SARS website brands this a phishing attack.

‘Members of the public are randomly emailed with false ‘spoofed’ emails made to look as if these emails were sent from SARS, but are in fact fraudulent emails aimed at enticing unsuspecting taxpayers to part with personal information such as bank account details.

‘Examples include emails that appear to be from returns@sars.co.za or refunds@sars.co.za indicating that tax payers are eligible to receive TAX refunds.

‘These emails contain links to false forms and false websites.

‘Do not open or respond to emails from unknown sources.

‘Beware of emails that ask for personal, tax, banking and eFiling details (login credentials, passwords, pins, credit / debit card information, etc.) as SARS will never ask taxpayers for such information in an email, phone or website.’

To report phishing, please send an email to phishing@sars.gov.za or call the Fraud and Anti-Corruption Hotline on 0800 00 2870.