The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is aware of media reporting that the ATO has been ‘hacked’. This is incorrect. The ATO’s systems are secure, resilient and have not been compromised.
The safety of taxpayers’ information is of the utmost importance to us, and the ATO continues to remain vigilant for new and emerging cyber threats.
If an individual sees unusual activity on their ATO account, it may be related to identity theft. Identity information can be compromised in a variety of ways, including requests for information by malicious actors, phishing emails, large-scale data breaches, and individual device or home network hacking.
When the ATO suspects that a taxpayer’s identity may be compromised, the ATO activates stringent security measures to protect the taxpayer.
If an individual is found to be a victim of third-party fraud, we will work with them to fix their client account and remediate it to its true and genuine position. The ATO will then work to recover the monies.
In the past year, the ATO has introduced a range of measures to better protect client identity and accounts. The ATO will soon be deploying additional security features in the ATO app, which will enable taxpayers to better protect themselves. This includes the ability to receive secure messages from the ATO when key information, such as bank account details, are changed.
The ATO continues to encourage individuals to use myID when interacting with the ATO’s online services and to set up to the highest identity strength where possible to make it harder for fraudsters to exploit their identities.
The ATO reminds taxpayers to be wary of scam emails, phone calls and text messages claiming to be from the ATO, particularly at Tax Time. The ATO may use SMS or email to ask taxpayers to contact us, but will never send an unsolicited message containing a hyperlink to log on to online services. Always access ATO services directly by typing ato.gov.au or my.gov.au into your browser.
If taxpayers have divulged personal information, such as your myGov details, or paid a scammer, they should contact the ATO immediately on 1800 008 540 so they can take appropriate steps to protect your information. In addition to calling the ATO, if taxpayers think their identity has been compromised and it has impacted their tax affairs, they should also inform their tax agent.
The ATO encourages the community to engage with them through reportscams@ato.gov.au or refer to ato.gov.au/scams for more information on how to spot and report ATO Impersonation Scams.
Notes to journalists
- ATO stock footage and images are available for use in news bulletins from our media centre.
- More information regarding what actions a taxpayer or tax agent can take is available at Help for identity theft
- For more tips on protecting your identity see: Top cyber security tips for individuals