Unauthorised: IRD Third Party Information Access

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Forums › Finance and wealth management › Unauthorised: IRD Third Party Information Access

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eracode

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#2282108 23-Jul-2019 11:33

firefuze:
Looked up the accounting firm on the companies office website, registered to a local guy who's name sounded familiar.

After speaking with my parents, This is their accountant.

However, my parents called their accountants to find out what was going on and turns out the guy has recently left that firm and gone solo. So appears to be poaching clients? But the weird thing is, I wasn't myself a client of theirs. Anyway, will leave it at that.

Slightly related note; appears to be a scam SMS going around, got it today pretending to be from IRD to claim my tax refund. Link directs to a fake IRD login page (reported to IRD)

"Inland Revenue: After the last calculation of your fiscal activity, we have determined that you are eligible to receive a refund. (visit this link: eg. xyz.info/auth)"

I haven't induced the actual link

I got that yesterday too and forwarded it to IRD - they want everyone who receives it to send it to them if possible. Address is phishing@ird.govt.nz

Was also reported upon in the Herald this morning.

Mine was an email - with my name on it - not SMS. Looked fairly authentic at first glance but some dodgy English: “.... you are owed a refund of $X on your GST account for period [XYZ]. If you want to refund it now, send us the following info ....”. Apart from all that and the phoney website and sender’s email address, I don’t have a GST account.

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firefuze

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#2282141 23-Jul-2019 12:28

I'd imagine the scam will be reasonably effective given all the messaging from IRD this year how refunds will be automatic etc. The unwary average Joe Bloggs is likely to associate the SMS or Email with IRDs recent marketing/messaging

MurrayM

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#2282149 23-Jul-2019 12:49

Does this scam ask for your credit card details? Surely that would be enough to ring alarm bells for most people?

firefuze

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#2282151 23-Jul-2019 12:53

MurrayM:

Does this scam ask for your credit card details? Surely that would be enough to ring alarm bells for most people?

Seems to just capture your 'MyIR' login details

eracode

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#2282539 24-Jul-2019 04:12

MurrayM:
Does this scam ask for your credit card details? Surely that would be enough to ring alarm bells for most people?

I wasn’t prepared to click on any supplied links to find out what they were looking for. The fact that it was clearly a scam was enough to make me stop in my tracks as soon as I realised that.

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

frankv

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#2282543 24-Jul-2019 06:31

firefuze:

MurrayM:

Does this scam ask for your credit card details? Surely that would be enough to ring alarm bells for most people?

Seems to just capture your 'MyIR' login details

One of the ways that scammers launder money is to get their victims to pay it to IRD and then claim a refund.

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snnet

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#2286822 31-Jul-2019 20:06

freitasm:

frankv:

firefuze:

Looked up the accounting firm on the companies office website, registered to a local guy who's name sounded familiar.

After speaking with my parents, This is their accountant.

However, my parents called their accountants to find out what was going on and turns out the guy has recently left that firm and gone solo. So appears to be poaching clients? But the weird thing is, I wasn't myself a client of theirs. Anyway, will leave it at that.

I suggest you don't leave it at that. It illustrates a failure of IRD's processes (giving people access without authorisation) and/or fraudulent activity by the accountant (claiming to IRD to have been authorised by you). If no-one complains, it will happen again. Not only that, but this apparently unethical accountant has your private information.

I agree. I would be very concerned. First because you don't have any signed agreement with this accountant so there's no commercial relationship here. Second he is using your information without your consent. Third he's got access to all your information - and pottentialy money - and you don't know what he's up to. And lastly, he could have just screwed up your whole financial life by doing this, if you had other plans in place with your actual accountant (if you had one).

Also, consider he will charge you for his "services".

No, don't leave at that.

Luckily it's not quite that easy to screw up someone's financial life when it comes to the IRD -- he'd have to be forging signatures on paper returns.

It's easy enough for the legitimate agent, if any, to become the tax agent again. They simply lodge it thru their IRD interface. Unless this process has changed in the past couple of years, the IRD doesn't seem to monitor the appointment of agents with scrutiny as they've given the ability to do these appointments to tax agents (which I guess is why you get sent snail mail / e-mails when your agents are altered)

The agent can act on your behalf and file your returns but any activity, authorised or not, will be traceable and unauthorised activity will be adjustable/reversible as far as the IRD is concerned.

You should of course ask the IRD to remove him if you haven't already as he has no business being your agent. But they'll probably tell you what I said earlier -- they can simply become your tax agent again with a few clicks.

I don't see how he has access to your money either, aside from a change to your refund direct credit details / having a cheque sent to him with your refund in which case because you never agreed for him to be your tax agent he doesn't have a leg to stand on if it came to questioning that.

My point of this reply is that it's not an end of world situation and nothing he does will permanently ruin your financial status.

afe66

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#2286878 31-Jul-2019 23:47

Find the name of the accountant and lay a complaint against his/her professional body alleging unprofessional behaviour.

I expect they will move faster than IRD and having a complaint with them is more of an issue that ird. It will stay on file. Copy the complaint to the accountant.

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