People in Lichfield and Burntwood are being warned about emails from fraudsters claiming to be from the tax office.
Messages claiming to be related to tax returns for 2016 are being sent out by scammers.
Staffordshire Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Ellis has warned people to be on their guard.
“The email suggests you are owed a refund, but people should not click on the link in the email because they do not take you to HMRC’s website. Instead you will be taken to a bogus site that tries to corrupt your smart phone, computer or mobile device.”
The scammers are not just restricting their activities to digital communication.
Commissioner Ellis added: “The second method is a phone call pretending to be from HMRC saying they have a case against you and you have to pay up by giving your bank account details. In most some cases offenders may ask for payment in iTunes voucher codes or security bonds as they can be easily redeemed and sold on by the fraudster.”
