Gardaí urge vigilance as scamsters pose as tax man in St. Stephen's Day swindle attempt in Donegal

The warning comes after heartless criminals targeted one local man on St. Stephen’s Day.

The individual received a text message which appeared to be from Revenue notifying him that he was due a refund.

However, it soon became clear the criminals behind the scheme were intent on gaining access to the man’s bank account details, said the gardaí.

“When he clicked on the link contained in the message he was prompted to enter his credit/debit card details.

“This was the only option open to him despite there being an option there for bank account details.

“He was unable to select any option other than credit/debit card.

“He checked with Revenue and he did not enter any of his details when he discovered that no refund was due,” a spokesperson said.

Gardaí warned members of the public that the Revenue Commissioners will not contact taxpayers about their tax affairs by the informal methodof text message.

“Revenue will never contact you and offer you a refund by text message. Please spread the word about this scam in case somebody falls victim to it.

“These scam artists are well aware that money is tight at this time of the year for most people and they are hoping that this fraudulent offer of a few handy quid will just prove too tempting,” a spokesperson for the gardaí said.