100,000 UK Taxpayer Accounts Compromised in £47 Million HMRC Phishing Attack

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the United Kingdom's tax authority, has reported a significant loss of £47 million due to a phishing scam that targeted taxpayer accounts. The incident was disclosed to Members of Parliament during a Treasury committee session, where two senior HMRC civil servants provided details of the breach. Approximately 100,000 individuals were affected, either by having their accounts compromised or by being contacted as part of the scam. HMRC has stated that it is reaching out to those impacted and has given assurances that affected individuals will not incur any financial losses as a result of the attack. The phishing scam involved fraudulent communications designed to trick taxpayers into revealing sensitive information, which was then used to access their accounts. HMRC is continuing its investigation and has implemented measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. The scale of the attack highlights ongoing cybersecurity challenges faced by government agencies in protecting personal and financial data.