User Tag List

Thanks useful information Thanks useful information:  21
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 27

Thread: Oh dear, I'm in deep dooey with the ATO

  1. #1
    Still in the Circle of Confusion Cage's Avatar
    Join Date
    25 May 2010
    Location
    Hunter Valley
    Posts
    5,580
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)

    Oh dear, I'm in deep dooey with the ATO

    Just received a recorded call on my unlisted land line, so obviously a number generator, purportedly from the ATO. The guy had a Malaysian accent and said I was in deep sh!t with the ATO and to call my 'attorney'.

    To discuss this matter, and to avoid decimating my meagre savings, or spend Xmas in the slammer, I should call 03 8820 5423 immediately.

    Yeah, in ya' dreams a'hole !
    Last edited by Cage; 01-09-2016 at 11:13am.
    Cheers
    Kev

    Nikon D810: D600 (Astro Modded): D7200 and 'stuff', lots of 'stuff'

  2. #2
    Member
    Join Date
    04 Jul 2016
    Location
    Sydney
    Posts
    376
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Wow Kev, good on you for having good instincts. Scammers are getting smarter everyday.

    https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/news/te...-to-scam-money

    I used to receive these funny calls all the time (Normally it's the "Congrats you just won such and such" or the "your PC is infected"). I took the most unsophisticated solution - unplugged my land line
    https://www.instagram.com/piczzilla

    D800 || Sigma Macro 105mm f2.8 || Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 || Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 || various trinkets


  3. #3
    Still in the Circle of Confusion
    Threadstarter
    Cage's Avatar
    Join Date
    25 May 2010
    Location
    Hunter Valley
    Posts
    5,580
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    hey pics

    I saw this scam on one of the current affairs programs recently.

    The sad part about it is that they seem to have success with the elderly and the not so well informed.

    Even though the number I was given looks like a Victorian number it was probably a VOIP link from overseas.

    I hate these low life scammers with a passion.

  4. #4
    Site Rules Breach - Permanent Ban
    Join Date
    17 Jan 2016
    Location
    Melbourne
    Posts
    1,015
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Yeah, Kev, we get an average of about one a day on each of our 2 landlines, and occasionally on our mobiles ... r'soles .

    The old canard "I am from Microsoft /Telstra tecnical support department, your Internet connection has a problem ... " is a very common one for us. Neither company has a "technical support department "....

    I am usually fairly rude to them.

    A good friend had to throw his PC away after ill-advisedly allowing these mongrels access to it!

  5. #5
    Administrator ricktas's Avatar
    Join Date
    24 Jun 2007
    Location
    Hobart
    Posts
    16,846
    Mentioned
    12 Post(s)
    Tagged
    1 Thread(s)
    Yep. Very common.

    One trick I learned recently is to ask them to prove they are from Telstra/ATO etc by saying, so you have my details? what is my date of birth? or what is my mother's maiden name? Of course they do not know, and then you can say well if you are from Telstra/ATO etc, you would have that information.

    Or just hang up on them. Best thing I have done of late is unplug the landline phone and purely use my mobile. I threw the landline phone in the rubbish, so no chance of me plugging it back in.
    "It is one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like, it is another thing to make a portrait of who they are" - Paul Caponigro

    Constructive Critique of my photographs is always appreciated
    Nikon, etc!

    RICK
    My Photography

  6. #6
    Still in the Circle of Confusion
    Threadstarter
    Cage's Avatar
    Join Date
    25 May 2010
    Location
    Hunter Valley
    Posts
    5,580
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    The call I received was a recorded one so I couldn't play games with the low life.

    I'd ditched my landline years ago and only have it because it came with my NBN installation. I very rarely use it and then only for local calls.

  7. #7
    Member
    Join Date
    29 Jul 2015
    Location
    Greensborough
    Posts
    1,655
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I always ask for ID, which they give. Fake of cause, but it waste their time. Lately, They have been asking me if they are speaking to. "thegrump" and I reply NO you are speaking to Mr Idiot. To which they get rude.
    I have been taking photos for 50 years. I am now trying to get into Photography


  8. #8
    Arch-Σigmoid Ausphotography Regular ameerat42's Avatar
    Join Date
    18 Sep 2009
    Location
    Nthn Sydney
    Posts
    23,972
    Mentioned
    24 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I gotta call from "Optus" recently...

    Him: "Hi, I'm [lshdco%#@*&8w30932847kj said quickly] from Optus [for some reason].
    May I speak to [Am] please?"

    Am: "Hi, yes, Am here."

    Him: "How are you today? I just need to confirm your ID.
    Can you please tell me your date of birth." (No ? as it's not really a Q.)

    Am: "No, actually I will not. You called me, just cold like that, so why should I
    give you any personal info."

    Him: [...some response...]

    Am: "Fine, but I won't."

    Him: "OK, have a nice day."

    Anyway, he probably was from there, but "hook airs".
    CC, Image editing OK.

  9. #9
    Ausphotography irregular Mark L's Avatar
    Join Date
    21 Nov 2010
    Location
    magical Mudgee
    Posts
    21,592
    Mentioned
    34 Post(s)
    Tagged
    1 Thread(s)
    I have no friends, so when the landline rings it's either family or a scammer.

  10. #10
    Ausphotography Addict
    Join Date
    22 Feb 2015
    Location
    Brisbane
    Posts
    4,284
    Mentioned
    5 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    if you have young kids, give the phone to your 6 yr old and tell them it's santa
    John Blackburn

    "Life is like a camera! Focus on what is important, capture the good times, develop from the negatives, and if things don't work out take another shot."


  11. #11
    Member
    Join Date
    19 May 2010
    Location
    Blue Mountains
    Posts
    394
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I've had the ATO scammer leave a message on my phone. They are just scum. I've been getting 4 or 5 calls a day sometimes from these low lifes (so called Telstra IT etc).

    Quote Originally Posted by tandeejay View Post
    if you have young kids, give the phone to your 6 yr old and tell them it's santa
    The only one at home is a couple of decades older, so it will have to be one of the dogs instead.
    Last edited by Ross the fiddler; 01-09-2016 at 9:40pm.
    Ross
    I fiddle with violins (when I'm not fiddling with a camera).
    Cameras: OM-D E-M1 & Mk II, Olympus Stylus 1, OM-D E-M5.
    Lenses: M.ZD7-14mm f2.8 PRO Lens, M.ZD12-40mm f2.8 PRO Lens, M.ZD40-150mm f2.8 PRO Lens with MC-14, MC-20, M.ZD45mm f1.8, M.ZD12-50, M.ZD60 Macro, M.ZD75-300 Mk II, MMF-3, ZD14-54 II, Sigma 150mm F2.8 APO Macro DG HSM.
    Flashes: FL36R X2, FL50R, FL50.
    Software: Capture One Pro 12 (& Olympus Workspace).

  12. #12
    Member formerly known as : Lplates Glenda's Avatar
    Join Date
    09 Sep 2011
    Location
    Gladstone
    Posts
    17,387
    Mentioned
    32 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Haven't had that one yet but went through a period where I was getting regular ones from Microsoft claiming our computer was infected. My first question was always 'which computer' which always threw them for a while. Depending on when they call I try and keep them on the line as long as possible in the hope they'll put my number on the do not bother list. One of my BILs is a Systems Analyst and kept them on the phone for nearly an hour about a year ago, claiming he was co-operating with them, said computer crashed was waiting for it to reboot etc etc and hasn't had another call yet. Ironically he works for the ATO so could have real fun if he got a call from someone claiming to be them.

    It is sad that some people have been hooked with these types of scams, especially the more vulnerable in society. I have no sympathy for those greedy ones who have been hooked by the promise of a large inheritance or making millions but can understand the unwary being taken in by someone claiming to be from Telstra/ATO etc.
    Glenda



  13. #13
    Member monjurulalam's Avatar
    Join Date
    03 Sep 2016
    Location
    St Marys
    Posts
    2
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I get email from ATO every other week. They want to give my money back and asks for my financial details.

    Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

  14. #14
    Ausphotography Regular Hawthy's Avatar
    Join Date
    16 Mar 2010
    Location
    Northern Rivers
    Posts
    1,894
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    It is not all bad news. The Department of Human Services wants to give me a 2016 Subsidy Benefit. http://www.hoax-slayer.net/departmen...it-scam-email/

    This one is quite well put together in that the email address ends in .gov.au . I can't figure out how they did that. Of course, it is a phishing exercise - no government department will write to you asking you for such detailed financial information. Plus, the chances of me qualifying for a government benefit are somewhere between none and Buckley's. And...I don't want one.
    Andrew




  15. #15
    Ausphotography Addict
    Join Date
    22 Feb 2015
    Location
    Brisbane
    Posts
    4,284
    Mentioned
    5 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by Hawthy View Post
    This one is quite well put together in that the email address ends in .gov.au . I can't figure out how they did that.
    It's quite easy for a spammer to spoof the from address. Just like when you send a mail by Australia Post, you can put someone else's address as the sender, so can a spammer put someone else's email address in the from address. This is why it is useless to do anything like "return to sender" on spam emails, as the marked "sender" will most likely be someone who has nothing to do with the spam/scam.

    There are mechanisms in place to try and counter this, and companies can publish a list of valid IP addresses that are allowed to send from their domain, but it is still up to the mail relays to check those lists, and not all do.

  16. #16
    Member richtbw's Avatar
    Join Date
    23 Jan 2012
    Location
    Ellenbrook
    Posts
    91
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I really enjoy the calls from "telstra's technical dept". What shuts them up is when I say that it is fascinating that the PC gets infested with malicious files while I do not have internet. The call is disconnected immediately.

  17. #17
    Member
    Join Date
    19 May 2010
    Location
    Blue Mountains
    Posts
    394
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by richtbw View Post
    I really enjoy the calls from "telstra's technical dept". What shuts them up is when I say that it is fascinating that the PC gets infested with malicious files while I do not have internet. The call is disconnected immediately.

  18. #18
    Administrator ricktas's Avatar
    Join Date
    24 Jun 2007
    Location
    Hobart
    Posts
    16,846
    Mentioned
    12 Post(s)
    Tagged
    1 Thread(s)
    ring ring.

    Microsoft Tech department. Can you turn on your computer, it is infected and we need to fix it.

    me - computer is already on.

    Good, what is on the screen right now

    me - porn

    What?

    me - Porn, and you are interrupting me..

    Can you please click on start

    me -No! Cause I am watching porn.

    They soon hang up..though I once had one tell me a website that he visited that he thought I might enjoy..
    Last edited by ricktas; 07-09-2016 at 6:01am.

  19. #19
    Member Physioz's Avatar
    Join Date
    28 Aug 2016
    Location
    Pymble
    Posts
    27
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    ha ha! Yip, I've had the Microsoft one (often). A few years back, I also played along for over an hour and eventually reached a point where I was supposed to log onto a given URL and download some software to "fix" my PC..

    The problem was the scammers must have thought they had hit another jackpot - I got several calls a day for the next few weeks. Solved the problem (1) No landline; (2) Changed to a Mac; (3) Moved to NSW from WA

    Last edited by Physioz; 07-09-2016 at 10:16am.

  20. #20
    Ausphotography Veteran
    Join Date
    22 Jun 2009
    Location
    Blackburn
    Posts
    2,447
    Mentioned
    4 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I like to play with them ....... string them along for a while and play dumb. I got so much under one guy's skin once time that he changed from spammer voice and just said "I want to kill you ... " 8*)))

    Love it!


    "If you want to be a better photographer, stand in front of more interesting stuff.” — Jim Richardson

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •