Australians now have a faster, easier way to protect themselves from scammers, with the launch of a real-time “verify call” feature in the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) app.
The tool allows users to confirm, within 30 seconds, whether a call claiming to be from the ATO is genuine or a scam.
ATO assistant commissioner Anita Challen said the feature gave taxpayers more control over their accounts and added a powerful layer of security.
“Scammers are becoming increasingly savvy, making it harder for individuals to distinguish between illegitimate and genuine contact,” Ms Challen said.
“This powerful security measure means fraudsters will find it harder to pretend to impersonate the ATO, Australians will have more control of their accounts and more certainty that they are dealing with the real tax office.”
The ATO app already offers tools for managing tax and super securely on the go, including real-time messages when key account changes occur and account-locking to prevent fraudulent activity.
Taxpayers simply need to download the app, register their device, and select the verify call option whenever they receive a call claiming to be from the ATO.
If the verification notification does not appear, the call should be treated as a scam.
Ms Challen also warned Australians to remain alert during tax time, when impersonation scams spike.
Almost 7500 ATO impersonation scams were reported in July 2025 alone.
“April fool’s may have passed but don’t be fooled by fraudsters attempting to access your tax and super accounts,” she said.
“When in doubt, stop and check, before responding or acting on a call or message claiming to be from the ATO.”
The ATO recommends taxpayers set up myID at the highest identity strength for the most secure login, and to report suspicious calls, SMS, emails or social media messages via the ATO’s scam reporting channels.
