Netizen gets email offering refund of S$1,248 from sender claiming to be IRAS, warns others of scam - Must Share News
A Singapore netizen received a scam email offering a S$1,248 refund from a sender claiming to be the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) but using a UK domain.
On November 8, a Singaporean netizen took to the Complaint Singapore Facebook group to warn others about a potential new scam variant that poses as the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). The recipient had received an email titled 'Important Notification' claiming a refund of S$1,248 had been processed.
The email instructed the recipient to 'follow the link below to complete the steps required to receive the fund.' However, the netizen quickly noticed the suspicious nature of the email address, which contained a United Kingdom country code.
Scam details
The netizen shared screenshots of the email received at approximately 7:47pm on November 8. Many Facebook users responded to the post, laughing at the scammers' poor attempt to impersonate a Singapore government entity while using a UK domain. Some commenters revealed they had received identical emails.
IRAS response
When contacted by MS News, the IRAS confirmed they are aware of the ongoing scam and have posted an advisory on their social media platforms. The authority stated they have received multiple reports of scam emails claiming tax refunds have been processed.
The IRAS reminded that they never send emails about specific refund amounts. All legitimate refunds are directly credited to an individual's registered bank or PayNow account. The authority advised the public not to click on suspicious links, download attachments, or disclose personal banking details and one-time passwords.
Users are encouraged to verify transactions and refunds through the official myTax portal at mytax.iras.gov.sg. For additional scam prevention information, the public can visit go.gov.sg/iras-scam.
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