Tax refund from Elster: That’s why you shouldn’t accept this remaining amount

• An email from Elster informs you about an alleged tax refund.
• However, there is no reason to be happy because something is wrong with the email.
• Behind the good news there is an attempted fraud.

For many people, the tax return is an annoying topic every year that they like to put off for as long as possible. But after the annoying paperwork is taken care of, there is also a ray of hope: the tax refund. Sometimes you can count on considerable amounts, although the joy is of course correspondingly great. If you have received such a notification from Elster, the tax office’s tax portal, you shouldn’t get excited too soon.

Cyber ​​criminals currently want to lure you with a remaining amount and get you to reveal valuable data. Instead of a hefty refund, your bank account will be emptied if you fall for the scam. To ensure that this doesn’t happen, we provide you with all the necessary information about the scam.

This is how the scammers lure you into a trap

As the consumer advice center reports, the fraudsters send an email in the name of Elster with the subject “Last request – remaining tax amount from 2022”. The supposedly outstanding amount has not yet been calculated and is still outstanding.

For further processing, it is absolutely necessary that you fill out an attached form and provide personal information such as your account details. If you do not comply with this request as quickly as possible, a payout cannot be guaranteed.

See through the scam

Here the fraudsters use methods that clearly indicate a phishing attempt. The refund serves as attractive bait and the senders want to put additional pressure on you with the deadline. The design and personal address also make the email appear serious at a glance.

However, you should not let this upset you and take a close look at such messages. If you are unsure, don’t trust the email, but if in doubt, go to Elster’s official mailbox.

The Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) also points out that the tax office would never contact you in this way and request your data. So just let the scam attempt disappear into the spam folder without being answered.

Do you want to make your next tax return as easy as possible without being lured by cybercriminals with false promises? Then you should take a look at our large comparison of tax programs. With these applications, not only will the tedious task become easier, but you can also expect a real refund.

Simple signs: How to recognize every phishing email

A first indication that you have received a phishing email: The email will ask you to confirm personal information or enter it on a website. This Under no circumstances should you comply with the demand. In addition, criminals often use the official logos of the companies they are copying in their emails, but not official sender addresses.

If the sender seems suspicious to you, you should read the email twice. You will often find spelling errors or inconsistencies in German grammar. The attackers usually do not write their own emails, but instead use automatically generated messages or translate known emails with a translation program. But why actually go to all this effort?

What do criminals achieve with phishing attacks?

Phishing is used on the Internet to collect real user data. These can be used to make money when email addresses, names and other information are sold for advertising purposes or passed on in criminal forums. With the data obtained, cyber criminals can also target future phishing attacks more specifically, making their attacks more effective.

Attachments and links contained in malicious emails often introduce malware or viruses to your computer. In addition, you should not simply ignore suspicious emails. Forward it to the email address above and help us report future phishing attacks.

More fraud warnings on netzwelt – stay one step ahead of cybercriminals

But phishing emails are not the only danger lurking on the Internet. In addition to attempted fraud, there are all sorts of viruses, Trojans and malware that can infect your computer. Unfortunately, data scandals are also part of everyday digital life. You can see the five most recent articles on the topic of “fraud warnings” below:

If you want to stay informed about the latest fraud reports, subscribe to netzwelt on X, Facebook and Instagram. You can also find all articles on the topic on the next page.

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