A number of Isle of Wight residents’ landline numbers have been targeted in a HMRC telephone scam and this has now led to police issuing a warning to all residents on the Isle of Wight.
The calls are regularly being reported to the police and are coming from an 0161 number, often stating that a warrant is out for the arrest of the person being called, due to unpaid tax and that they need to press ‘1’ to speak with a case officer and resolve the issue.
Angela Evans, tax manager at Moore also reported receiving the call yesterday, to her home landline.
Angela said that the caller “sounded very aggressive and was stating that I had unpaid tax and therefore this had resulted in me being issued with an arrest warrant.”
These fraudulent calls can be dealt with fairly easily if you recognise that it is a scam. However, there are concerns for older or vulnerable residents. If you have neighbours or relatives who may be at risk of this scam, please let them know.
The police are asking residents on the Isle of Wight to call 101 if they receive suspicious calls in relation to this matter, providing as much information as possible.
Moore would like to remind you of ways that you can report fraudulent emails and text messages.
You can forward suspicious emails to the HMRC phishing team:
phishing@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk
To forward suspicious text messages to HMRC use:
60599