ATO targeted twice by refund scam email

The Assistant Treasurer Senator Nick Sherry has warned of a sophisticated and "convincing" email phishing scam masquerading as an information update on tax refunds and e-tax.

It was the second time in less than a month that a warning was issued.

The latest email asked recipients to enter their email, name and date of birth to search for any refund owing.

It then directed them to a bogus Tax Office website and asked for personal and credit card details.

Sherry said reports coming into the Australian Taxation Office suggested there was a "high volume" of emails circulating the internet.

"Anyone who has already entered their credit card information into the bogus site should immediately report it to their credit card provider," he said.

"This particular scam is quite sophisticated and uses convincing fakes of what could be easily mistaken for Australian Tax Office web pages."

The email used the Tax Office logo and includes the words ‘Tax refund' in the subject heading.

It also used text along the lines of: "General information about e-tax, including the demonstration, benefits of using e-tax, computer and eligibility requirements, and security" and other variations of these words.