Personal tax filing at risk of fraud

Personal tax filing at risk of fraud

Emails claiming to be from the taxman could be the work of fraudsters

ACCA’s head of global taxation has said online filings of personal tax are at
great risk of being corrupted by fraud and has advised users to be vigilant.

Chas Roy-Chowdhury, head of global taxation at ACCA, said: ‘It is good to see
HMRC being so proactive about this issue and flagging it up.

‘Like all online transactions that involve personal and financial details,
people need to exercise caution and make sure they don’t open themselves up to
fraud.’

HM Revenue & Customs, which has mandated that all personal tax filings
should be done online in the future, said that online fraud is a ‘real risk’
which exploits weaknesses in software and email accounts.

ACCA has issued a checklist guideline for agents who file returns which
include not responding to emails from the taxman if there is any hint it may not
be from them.

The institute has said that it is very rare HMRC will get in touch via email
and to contact individuals for personal financial information.

HMRC processed approximately 4.1m income tax self-assessment forms between
January and March last year.

Further reading:

Tax code errors as enquiries skyrocket

ACCA

Share

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Resources & Whitepapers

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata
Professional Services

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata

3y

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folde...

In the past decade, the professional services industry has transformed significantly. Digital disruptions, increased competition, and changing market ...

View resource
2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

3y

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professi...

In recent months, professional services firms are facing more pressure than ever to deliver value to clients. Often, clients look at the firms own inf...

View resource
Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine
Accounting Firms

Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

3y

Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

In a world of instant results and automated workloads, the potential for AP to drive insights and transform results is enormous. But, if you’re still ...

View resource
Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021
Making Tax Digital

Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

3y

Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

The first phase of Making Tax Digital (MTD) saw the requirement for the digital submission of the VAT Return using compliant software. That’s now behi...

View resource