HMRC: Pay attention to SMS scams with tax rebate

Earlier this month, John, who thought he owed a tax refund, received an "InfoHM" SMS.

"I got up early to have my eyes scrambled," he says. "The excitement aroused by what my tax refund would be overwhelmed by my normally rational brain."

He followed the instructions online and involuntarily provided personal and bank account details to online fraudsters.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) now warns young adults to be wary of these phone scams.

According to the government, in April and May, fraudsters target vulnerable people with fake messages to coincide with the treatment of legitimate rebates.

Because young adults generally manage their finances via their mobile phone, they can be particularly sensitive to an SMS approach, warns HMRC.

Last spring, the HMRC received 250,000 reports of such scams.

John, who did not want the BBC to use his real name, says he's "now afraid" to fall in love. But he says the page he was intended for was "the spitting image" of a gov.uk website. After entering his social insurance number and date of birth, he informed him that he needed a credible rebate of £ 462.

He ended up providing details, including his bank details and even his mother's maiden name.

"I have not even thought twice before giving this information to this website," he says.

"They just have to catch you off guard … If I had the text yesterday at 11:30 am after a good night's sleep, I would have been like:" It's clearly a scam "."

"I know I'm an idiot"

John has reported the offense to HMRC and Action Fraud and has since implemented additional online security on his accounts.

"You do not have to tell me I'm an idiot," he says. "I know I'm an idiot, it's one of the craziest things I've ever done."

The HMRC claims that it never asks for bank details via SMS or phone and that it closes hundreds of sites every week badociated with these schemes, known as "phishing scams" ".

"We are determined to protect the honest people from these fraudsters who will stop at nothing to make their phishing scams look legitimate," said Angela MacDonald, HMRC's Customer Service Manager.

"If you receive any of these emails or texts, do not respond and report it to HMRC so that more online criminals are blocked."

Fraudsters also use phone calls, voicemails and emails that may contain computer viruses designed to copy personal or financial information.