Philadelphia residents who receive a suspicious text message claiming to be from the city's Department of Revenue should not click on any links or provide sensitive information to the sender, city officials said Tuesday.
The phishing scam — sent out Monday and Tuesday — tells recipients that the revenue department has processed a "refund request" that can be redeemed by following a link to provide payment information. The message claims that failure to submit banking information will disqualify residents from accessing refunds.
In a statement Tuesday afternoon, the revenue department confirmed the text messages are fraudulent and said the texts contain malicious links. The department said it would never request bank or refund-sensitive information via text message.
Officials said there is no evidence that city databases have been breached or that any taxpayer data has been compromised.
Residents who have shared personal or financial information are advised to report it to the FBI's 24/7 regional tip line at 215-418-4000. Tips also can be submitted online to the FBI or the federal Internet Crimes Complaint Center.
City officials said people should always be skeptical about unsolicited requests for sensitive information and report suspicious activity. Only websites with the phila.gov domain should be trusted. The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General has additional tips on how people can identify and protect themselves from phishing scams.
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