No negligence from Sars regarding hijacked taxpayer profiles: Kieswetter

The SA Revenue Service (Sars) has found no negligence can be imputed to it in the case of a Sandton-based ICT firm that lost a R20m tax refund after its Sars e-filing profile was allegedly hacked.

The Sunday Times reported on Sunday about the firm and quoted an independent investigator who said Sars was apparently hesitant to acknowledge and investigate allegations that the theft could involve insiders who give sophisticated syndicates access to the system.   

In a statement on Thursday, Sars said it had extensively investigated the alleged crime with the sole purpose of uncovering any internal irregularities or alleged complicity by Sars staff that may have compromised the systems of the organisation. 

“We have found that no negligence or liability that can be imputed to Sars, meaning that Sars can therefore not be held liable for the criminal action reported by the Sunday Times,” Sars commissioner Edward Kieswetter said. 

He said Sars would help the company and all law enforcement agencies in any investigations that must follow to uncover the source of the tax crime. 

Kieswetter said the crime of profile hijacking pointed to pervasive cybercrime with global links. The sophistication of this type of crime was constantly evolving and Sars, like all other financial institutions, was under constant threat due to international cybercrime syndicates.

Kieswetter said Sars had invested significantly in its technological infrastructure to combat the phenomenon. He said the inquiry under way by the Office of the Tax Ombud to investigate incidents of profile hijacking was welcomed by Sars. 

He said Sars was co-operating with the ombud and looked forward to the recommendations that would be made on how best to combat the scourge of profile hijacking. 

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