Fraudulent SMS in the name of the Austrian Tax Office

Currently, a large number of fake text messages are being sent in the name of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance (“Bundesministerium für Finanzen” or “BMF”). In these messages the recipients are notified of an allegedly outstanding claim by the tax office. The message threatens to seize the debt, which can only be avoided by paying the outstanding amount immediately. For this purpose, a "payment link" is sent, which leads in reality to a fake website of the Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF).

This is fraud! The tax office does not send garnishment threats by SMS. So don't let yourself be intimidated and don't transfer the amounts demanded under any circumstances. Instead, simply ignore these messages.

Further information on this scam can be found on the website of Watchlist Internet (German).