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HM Revenue and Customs
The UK’s HM Revenue and Customs has warned the public not to share sensitive personal information online to avoid their identities being used to commit tax fraud, following reports that criminals are trying to claim bogus tax refunds.

The warnings come in the usual spring tax-deadline filing period ahead of the new financial year in April.

“HMRC is aware that criminals are attempting to obtain customers’ Government Gateway logins and other personal details, enabling them to register for Income Tax Self Assessment and submit bogus tax refund claims before pocketing the repayment,” the UK tax authority said in a statement earlier this week. “Individuals, ranging from teenagers to pensioners, are being targeted on social media platforms by fraudsters seeking to 'borrow' their identities. In return, the individual is promised a cut of the tax refund ‘risk-free’.”

The organisation said people should only deal with HMRC directly or through their tax advisor in relation to their self-assessment tax refunds.

“People need to think extremely carefully before they involve themselves in an arrangement like this, because if something looks too good to be true, then it almost certainly is. Those who get involved risk becoming the victim of blackmail, threats of violence and wider abuse of their personal information, as criminals seek to exploit them further,” Simon Cubitt, head of Cybercrime, HMRC, said.