Inland Revenue has released a warning about scammers targeting customers by claiming they owe money.
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The scammer threatens the caller that if they don’t go to NZ Post and make a deposit into what is a fake account, they will be deported, face court action or jail time. In some cases people have been directed to purchase a Prezzie card and load it with the amount owed. The caller ID that appears when the scammer telephones is identical to Inland Revenue’s 0800 number. One of the victims was duped out of $6,500.
IRD states it will never:
IRD advises these steps to protect yourself from scammers:
For more advice, see Consumer's article on avoiding scams.