You are likely to fall into the trap of this scam that impersonates the Tax Agency

Once again we bring you a cyber scam perpetrated by email. And, again, like a few days ago, they intend to supplant a Spanish public institution: yes then it was the National Police, is now someone whose notifications command much more respect… the Tax Agency. Let’s see what the scam is this time, and how we can protect ourselves from it.

In a TikTok video, user @lawtips, who specializes in offering legal advice, shared reflections about an e-mail that he received and that, although at first glance it seemed legitimatesome elements of it screamed ‘scam alert’ if you knew where to look.

The fraudulent message is presented as a notification from the Tax Agency (AEAT), and appears to be meticulously designed to deceive anyone who receives it.

@lawtips

BEWARE OF THIS🚨

♬ original sound – Lawtips

Better to be cautious

In the sender field appears “notifications@aeat.es” (a domain, mind you, official… although, like all, falsifiable) and uses a subject that generates urgency: “final notification”, warning inside the e-mail that the victim has 48 hours left to respond to said notification.

“It is super well written, without spelling mistakes, with an identifier, (beginning with) “from the State Tax Administration Agency we will contact you…”, and they even cite a law! “Based on article 29 of the Value Added Tax Law. And at the bottom they put this seal, and a confidentiality notice.”

All of them, elements that add an extra level of credibilityand that authorities still often give as examples of aspects to look for to detect scams.

However, it is precisely the urgency with which it induces us to respond which constitutes a clear indication that it is a scam: it is done to pressure victims to act quickly (by clicking on the malicious link included in the email, a clear case of phishing to steal personal and financial information), without give them time to think.

The advice given by experts in these cases is clear: never click on links in emails that are even the least bit suspicious. And, in fact, although in principle they are not suspicious, if you yourself can enter the official website and/or app to access information, it will always be preferable to accessing it through a link.

It is always better to err on the side of caution than becoming a victim of an online scam.

Image | Marcos Merino through AI

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