The Department of Social Protection is warning the public to be aware of sophisticated phishing scams, that sees people receiving text messages with links to fake Government websites.
The text messages, purporting to be from the Department, contain web links which the person is told to click on.
These web links are made to look similar to the actual web addresses of Departmental sites.
When a person clicks on the link, they are brought to a site that has been specifically crafted to look exactly like the Department's MyWelfare or MyGovID web sites. The person is then asked to provide their name, PPSN and bank account details.
These are sophisticated scams, and Department is urging customers to be cautious when managing claims online and to ensure that they are using official websites.
The real website addresses for MyWelfare.ie and MyGovID services are:
www.mywelfare.ie or https://www.mywelfare.ie or https://services.mywelfare.ie
www.mygovid.ie or https://www.mygovid.ie
The Department of Social Protection said it will never request bank account or other account details from customers by SMS or on social media. It does not clarify or check this information over the phone.
It said that when it becomes aware of phishing sites it takes it very seriously and makes every effort to have these sites removed as quickly as possible.
Anyone who thinks they provided personal information in response to these fraudulent text messages should contact their bank immediately.
