Every June, as Australians start thinking about their tax returns, a second group gets to work: scammers. Tax season is the one time of year when a message that appears to come from myGov or the ATO feels expected, even welcome. A refund could be real money, and a problem with your return sounds urgent. That is exactly the window criminals aim for.
The scale is not small. The ATO's published scam data logged 1,461 reports of ATO impersonation scams in March 2026 alone, and reports climb as July 1 approaches. Here is what this season's fakes look like, and the simple habits that beat them.
The two emails doing the rounds
The compensation email. A message claiming to be from the ATO or myGov says your taxable income has been recalculated and you are owed compensation. To receive the money, you are asked to reply with personal documents: payslips, your tax file number, driver's licence and Medicare details. The ATO has warned about exactly this wording in its scam alerts. It is a scam. The ATO does not pay compensation for recalculated income, and it never asks for identity documents by email.
The identity check email. A polished email, sometimes including screenshots of the government's digital identity app, asks you to verify your identity through a so-called secure form. The link leads to a convincing copy of the myGov sign in page that captures whatever you type. The slicker versions harvest in stages: first your username and password, then your SMS verification code, then card details and personal information, each on its own believable screen.
Why a stolen myGov login is the jackpot
A myGov account links your tax, Medicare and other government services in one place. With your login and an intercepted verification code, a criminal can change the bank account your refund is paid into, lodge false returns or claims in your name, and reuse your identity documents for fraud elsewhere. The damage routinely outlasts tax season.
The tells that give them away
- There is a sign in link. This is the big one. The ATO and myGov do not send emails or text messages containing links to sign in to their online services. Any message with a link to log in to your account is fake by definition.
- A deadline or a threat. Within 24 hours. Your account will be suspended. Legal action has commenced. Pressure is the product: real agencies do not threaten you into clicking.
- Money you were not expecting. Compensation offers, surprise refunds and unclaimed payments are bait. If you are genuinely owed money it will be waiting in your real myGov inbox, and your tax agent will know about it.
- Requests for documents by email. No legitimate agency asks you to reply with your tax file number, Medicare card, licence or payslips.
- The address is nearly right. Check sender addresses and hover over links before touching them. Lookalike web addresses with extra words, swapped letters or unusual endings are standard scammer practice.
Habits that beat the scam every time
- Never sign in through a link. Type my.gov.au or ato.gov.au into your browser yourself, or use the official app.
- Treat your real myGov inbox as the source of truth. If an email claims you have a message waiting, sign in the long way and look.
- Use a passkey or the strongest sign in protection myGov offers, and never share a verification code with anyone, including anyone on the phone.
- Slow down. Every successful phishing email relies on you acting before you think.
If you clicked, or you are not sure
- Phone the ATO's dedicated line on 1800 008 540 to verify whether a contact was genuine, and tell them if you have already shared information.
- Forward suspicious ATO branded emails to [email protected], then delete them.
- Report what you saw at scamwatch.gov.au so others get warned faster.
- If you shared identity documents, contact IDCARE at idcare.org, the national identity and cyber support service, and tell your bank immediately.
Check before you click
If a message, link or sender feels off, you can run it past AVA first. Paste the web address or contact details into the free AVA check tool, linked at the top of this page, and you will get a clear, explainable risk score in seconds, with up to five free checks a day. A short pause to check is the cheapest insurance tax season offers.