SARS hoax emails/scams

There are many scams and hoax emails from people purporting to be from SARS. Hoax emails usually look something like the one below which we’ve received in our inbox. We have received queries about whether these emails are in fact legitimate, and we feel it is necessary to write this article.

While they may look different, it is important to never click on links in the email, download attachments, and never reply to these emails.

While these emails usually end up in your spam folder, it may sometimes not. From what we understand, the action of your email inbox classifying mail as spam, works something like this.  When you receive a mail and click on the report as spam button, your email provider lists the mail from this address as SPAM. When internet users all over the net, report mail from a specific address as spam, all emails originating from this specific address are classified as spam.

Somebody better versed in IT can give you a more precise explanation. We are accountants, not computer boffins:)

So, anyway, when you receive a mail like this, report it as spam. It is sort of like a collective action that benefits all internet users.

But back to SARS scams. From our experience with dealing with SARS, they will never send you an email like this. While SARS might email you regarding your taxes, they will not explicitly state that you have received a refund or that you should click on links in emails.

If you have no knowledge of why SARS would be paying you a refund on your taxes, then ignore these mails. Do NOT click on these links and don’t open or download attachments. Possible reasons why scamsters direct you to these pages, might be for identity theft, to infiltrate your PC with viruses, obtain your banking details, etc. The possibilities are endless.

A good rule of thumb if you’re not clued up on liaising with SARS is to contact them and enquire about the contents of the email. You can go in to a branch, ask your tax practitioner to enquire for you, or you could call them which would be the simplest option for most people. Their call centre number is 0800 007 277. It is a toll free number, if called from a telkom land-line number.

We hope this article helped.