French police warn of ‘overpaid tax’ email scam
Email claims recipients are owed money by French tax authorities
The fraudulent email is urging people to act within 48 hours
Shutterstock and Gendarmerie du Rhône Facebook page
A scam email is circulating informing people that they have overpaid tax and are thus eligible for a reimbursement.
The Gendarmerie du Rhône says, via a Facebook post, that people should remain vigilant to such emails, one of which it has seen.
In all cases you should always check the sender’s address. In the reported case, it came from a suspicious address, unrelated to the French tax authorities.
Legitimate emails from the official Direction départementale des Finances Publiques (DGFiP) come from the official domain @dgfip.finances.gouv.fr.
In scam emails, deadlines are often tight, creating a sense of urgency and not allowing recipients to think things through. In this case, the email set a 48-hour deadline to claim a refund.
If you receive or interact with such an email, do not click on any links or provide personal information.
You should promptly call your bank's fraud line if you suspect you have clicked on a fraudulent email and entered personal banking information.
It is important to remember that tax refunds are processed automatically by bank transfer to the account already registered with the tax authorities. At no point will the DGFiP ask you by email to confirm your IBAN, update your banking details, or take action to receive a refund.
The official dates for those who are due to receive a reimbursement for overpaid tax are July 24 and 31, and in such a case, the money will be transferred directly to your bank account with no action required on your part.
If you are unsure about the validity of an email, you can also log into your personal space on impots.gouv.fr to verify whether the same message appears in your secure inbox.
If you receive this type of message, you can report it to the cybercrime alert platform PHAROS.
