SARS: Credit Audit scam

SARS: Credit Audit scam

• 11 September 2023
• Accounting
• South African Accounting Academy

This fraudulent email states that a credit audit is complete and a Statement of Account for the filing season has been issued.

Please do not click on any suspicious links and delete these messages.

SARS said to report or to get more information on scams, send an email to [email protected] or call the Fraud and Anti-Corruption Hotline on 080 000 2870. 

You are urged to stay safe and vigilant, don’t click on any suspicious links or subscribe to ‘get-rich-quick’ schemes.

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. 

These emails appear to be from a sars.gov.za e-mail address, indicating that taxpayers are eligible to receive tax or monetary benefits, or threatening some form of harm. These emails contain links to false forms and fake websites made to look like the “real thing”, but with the aim of fooling people into entering personal information such as bank account details which the criminals then extract and use fraudulently.

Please note these are scams and SARS taxpayers should take note of the following:

• 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.).

• SARS will never request your banking details in any communication that you receive via post, email, or SMS. However, for the purpose of telephonic engagement and authentication purposes, SARS will verify your personal details. Importantly, SARS will not send you any hyperlinks to other websites - even those of banks.

• Beware of false SMS’s.

• SARS does not send *.htm or *.html attachments.

• SARS will never ask for your credit card details.

Click here to download an example of the scam:

https://www.sars.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/Docs/Scams/SARS-SCAM-348-Credit-audit-complete-7-September-2023.pdf

Relevance to Auditors, Independent Reviewers & Accountants:

• As an auditor, independent reviewer, accountant or tax practitioner, you need to be aware of the latest scams that appear to be from SARS.

• As a taxpayer, you also need to be aware of the latest scams that appear to be from SARS.

Relevance to Your Clients:

• As taxpayers, your clients also need to be aware of the latest scams that appear to be from SARS

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