Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates: https://t.me/mothershipsg
The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has published an advisory warning of scam emails and text messages designed to trick recipients into furnishing their personal details and credit card numbers.
Email scam
Screenshots provided by IRAS showed an email riddled with spelling errors purporting that recipients are eligible for a “tax reffund” of S$280.
Upon clicking on the link provided in the email, recipients are redirected to a page spoofing IRAS’s myTax portal and asked for their telephone number and postal code.
Once they’ve done that, they are sent to another page asking for their credit card details.
SMS scam
Another scam that the IRAS warned of involved a text message accusing the recipient of “unreported income and tax evasion”, prompting them to “provide further clarification” through a link.
That link redirects to a form asking users for their full name and credit card details.
Surge in IRAS impersonation scams
At the end of July 2022, the Singapore police and IRAS said they had observed a sudden surge in phishing scams that month.
Scammers would impersonate IRAS and target victims through text messages.
At the time, at least 51 victims had fallen prey, with total losses amounting to at least S$37,400.
To avoid getting scammed, IRAS advised the public to:
- Ensure the legitimacy of links they’re clicking on; bonafide tax-related processes are conducted through “iras.gov.sg”…
