18 cases of fake LHDN officers since Jan 1

18 cases of fake LHDN officers since Jan 1

More than RM636,000 lost to scammers posing as income tax officers.

The Inland Revenue Board has utilised both mainstream and social media to warn people not to fall victim to such scams.
KUALA LUMPUR:
As many as 18 cases of syndicate members impersonating as Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) officers involving losses of about RM636,311 were reported from Jan 1 to Feb 9 this year.

LHDN, in a statement today, said that the information was obtained from cases reported by the media.

“The tactic used by the scammer is to intimidate the victim into panic before forcing them to take hasty action by handing over personal and banking details, and some even voluntarily make cash payments to members of the syndicate,” the statement said.

To prevent the same thing from recurring, the public has been reminded to verify any dubious calls, emails or letters purportedly from LHDN, by contacting the Hasil Care Line at 03-89111000/ 603-89111100 (overseas), or at www.hasil.gov.my or go to the nearest branch.

In addition, the public can also check the modus operandi of the syndicate here.

As part of efforts to raise public awareness, LHDN has also utilised both mainstream and social media in addition to sending official email via [email protected] with infographics as a reminder relating to scammer activities.

“To date, a total of 2,927,400 emails have been sent to email addresses in the LHDN database and another 814,865 are still in the delivery process,” the statement said.

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