Tax repayment from Elster: With this trick, fraudsters want to pull your money out of your pocket

Current fraud warnings

January 29, 2025 at 6:11 p.m.

A tax repayment is always welcome. We'll tell you why you should be skeptical if Elster is currently informing you about a remaining amount.

For many, the tax return is an annoying topic every year, which is often postponed as long as possible. But after the annoying paperwork is done, there is also a ray of hope: the tax refund. Sometimes you can count on stately amounts, although the joy is of course correspondingly great. If you have received such a notification from Elster (electronic tax return), the tax portal of the tax office, you should not look forward to it too early.

Cybercriminals currently want to bait with a remaining amount and thus make you reveal valuable data. Instead of a juicy reimbursement, your bank account will be cleared empty if you fall in the attempt to fraud. So that this does not happen, we provide you with all the necessary information about the stitch.

So the fraudsters lure you into the trap

Like that State Criminal Police Office in Lower Saxony reports, the fraudsters send an email with the subject “Elster tax inspection – their information about the tax at a glance” on behalf of Elster.

In order to calculate the supposed repayment, it is absolutely necessary that your personal information such as your account details will transmit to the fraudsters. To put you under addition, you will be given a deadline.

The fraudsters have come up with a clever trick so that the fake links and URLs have as real as possible in this fraud stitch. In the abbreviation “Elster”, they use a large -scale “i” instead of a small “L”. The difference between “L” and “I” is hardly recognizable. However, the deception is noticeable in the sender address of the mail. It ends on eister.de instead of Elster.de.

Simple signs: How to recognize every phishing email

A first indication that you have received a phishing email: As part of the email, you will be asked to confirm personal data or enter on a website. This You should never meet the claim. In addition, criminals often use the official logos of companies that copy them, but not official sender addresses.

If the sender feels suspiciously, you should read the email twice. Often you will also find spelling mistakes or inconsistencies in German grammar. The attackers usually do not write their emails themselves, but instead automatically use well -known emails with a translation program. But why actually all the effort?

What do criminals achieve with phishing attacks?

Phishing is used on the Internet to collect real user data. With these, money can be earned if email addresses, names and other information are sold for advertising purposes or passed on in criminal forums. With the data obtained, cyber-criminal future phishing attacks can also address more targeted ones, their attacks become more effective.

Attachments and links, which are contained in damaged emails, often also incorporate malware or viruses on your computer. In addition, you shouldn't just leave suspicious emails left. Forwards you to the above email address and help us to report on future phishing attacks.

Protection with VPN

Not only with mindfulness and antivirus programs you can protect yourself from phishing, but also with a VPN service. When surfing the Internet, the websites visited collect data about you, pass them on to third parties. Among other things, cybercriminals get to your email address.

With a VPN you veil your IP address and can move anonymously through the Internet. Your entire internet activity is hidden and you will no longer be the goal of malware and other cyber threats so quickly.

We have summarized further reasons that speak for a VPN in the linked article. As a series and film fans, you also benefit from the circumstances of the country barriers.

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