HMRC announces huge drop in scams and urges people to keep reporting dodgy calls, texts and emails

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The latest HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures show that the number of reported scam phone calls made by criminals impersonating the department have fallen by 97 per cent over the last 12 months.Reports of dodgy phone calls peaked at 79,477 in March 2021 and fell to just 2,491 in December 2021, something which HMRC says is a result of all its efforts to make people more aware of scams and methods cyber criminals use.The fall in scam call reports to HMRC has also been seen elsewhere with a 92 per cent drop in phishing emails and a 97 per cent decline in fake texts recorded over the last year.HMRC said these significant results are testament to some of the work of teams across the department in tackling these attempts to defraud people, including dedicated customer protection teams and helplines, tools to report scams and the use of innovative technologies.It also signals that the public is more aware of cyber criminals and the methods they use to trick people into handing over personal and financial details.Commenting on the figures, Mike Fell, HMRC’s Head of Cyber Security Operations, said: “We work incredibly hard to protect the public from these criminals who ruin lives by stealing from people.“It’s great news that fewer people are receiving and reporting these attempted frauds, but it is still important they continue to report suspicious contact to us.

We will continue to do everything we can to protect the public from these cynical attempts to impersonate HMRC to steal from people.”Mike's advice to all HMRC customers is to never let yourself be rushed.He said: "If someone contacts you saying they are from HMRC, wanting you to urgently transfer money or give personal information, be on your guard - HMRC will never