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Fraudsters will go to great lengths to deceive people – and, in the worst-case scenario, steal their data and money. Time and again, fake messages that purport to come from well-known institutions or companies are intended to trick people into entering their data.
After numerous Austrians recently received fake messages purporting to be the receipt of postal parcels, the Ministry of Finance (BMF) is now warning of the following scam: An increasing number of fake SMS and email messages are being sent to citizens in the name of the Austrian tax authorities (e.g. FinanzOnline).
The fraudulent messages entice recipients to click on a link and enter their personal data.
The hyperlinks take you to fake websites that look like FinanzOnline or oesterreich.gv.at, the Republic of Austria’s official online presence and request personal information, specifically access data.
Attention! This is an internet fraud attempt; the messages and linked websites are fake.
The Federal Ministry of Finance continuously warns against such and similar fraud attempts, which are carried out via various communication channels such as SMS, e-mail, and telephone calls. In fact, official information is sent as notices, by post, or in the FinanzOnline Databox. The tax authorities never ask citizens to provide personal data such as passwords, credit card details, or account information.
The Ministry of Finance gives the following tips if you receive such fake messages:
Do not follow the instructions contained in them under any circumstances!
Never click on any links or files contained therein!
Under no circumstances should you disclose personal data such as passwords, credit card details, or account information!
The BMF recommends that you delete such SMS and e-mail messages immediately!
- source: oe24.at/picture: oe24.at
