If you receive a recorded phone call purporting to come from Revenue saying you owe money and legal actions will be taken unless you press 1 to arrange payment, hang up. The call is a scam. The automated call is set up by cybercriminals to steal personal information such as your PPS number or bank details.
Revenue will never ask customers to provide personal information via telephone calls or text messages. There have been a number of recent reports of scams in which members of the public have been receiving phone calls from persons purporting to be from the Department of Social Protection. The caller alleges that there is an investigation ongoing in relation to the recipient of the call and is ultimately looking for your PPS number. But, legitimate companies will never for personal information over the phone.
How the Scam Works
Potential victims will receive an automated call from an 083 number and advises them to press number one or two. Once they press the number, they will transferred to a person who advises them that their PPS number or their bank account has been used in some serious crime.
They're then advised that their money needs to be protected, and it needs to be moved to a different account. The potential victim will be persuaded to download apps onto their laptops and phones, which will allow the fraudster to move the money into different accounts.
If the potential victims question the legitimacy of the process, they receive fraudulent calls back from telephone numbers that purported to be from the Gardai, where the callers will confirmed to the potential victims that the scam is legitimate.
The scenario being used by the fraudster may change, they may say your account being used for money laundering, while another could sayy there are warrants for your arrest. But, in all cases, what the fraudster wants is your data, to take control of your bank account and steal money from you.