Child Benefit is paid by HMRC to around 7 million UK households every 4 weeks. Two factors make it a prime smishing target: parents are time-pressured and often check phones while juggling other tasks, leaving fewer reflective seconds to spot scams; and the threat of suspension hits particularly hard for households where Child Benefit is a significant proportion of monthly income. HMRC has issued repeated public warnings about Child Benefit-impersonation campaigns — the volume is consistently high.
Three Child Benefit scam-text variants currently in circulation
From: HMRC or HM-Revenue (spoofed sender ID)
Body: “HMRC: Your Child Benefit will be suspended on 14/06 due to outstanding verification. Complete identity check now: hmrc-childbenefit-verify[dot]com”
Red flags:
HMRC does not suspend Child Benefit via SMS-linked verification. Real Child Benefit changes are managed exclusively through www.gov.uk/child-benefit or by phoning the Child Benefit helpline on 0300 200 3100.
Domain check. All genuine HMRC web pages live under gov.uk. Anything ending .com, .uk, .co.uk that mentions HMRC or Child Benefit is a phishing clone.
Specific suspension date is engineered to provoke a panic response in parents who can’t afford an interruption to payments.
The phishing form asks for full name, address, date of birth, National Insurance number, child(ren) details, bank sort code and account number, plus uploaded ID. Combined data enables identity fraud, opening accounts, and fraudulent benefit claims in your name.
From: HMRC (spoofed)
Body: “HMRC: You’re due a Child Benefit refund of £512.40 for tax year 2024-25. Confirm bank details to receive payment: childbenefit-refund[dot]uk”
Red flags:
HMRC Child Benefit refunds are paid automatically into the bank account already on file. No “confirm bank details” step exists.
HMRC rarely “refunds” Child Benefit in the way the SMS implies. Most Child Benefit adjustments are made via PAYE or Self Assessment — not as a one-off “refund”.
The specific decimal amount (£512.40) is designed to feel authentic rather than too-good-to-be-true.
Many recent campaigns are timed to school summer holidays when parents are paying more attention to family finances and the topic feels relevant.
From: HMRC-CB (spoofed)
Body: “HMRC Child Benefit: Your account requires immediate verification due to a discrepancy. Avoid investigation by completing at: gov-uk-childbenefit[dot]com”
Red flags:
Threat of “investigation” is engineered to provoke a fear response. Real HMRC compliance contact is by letter, with reference numbers and statutory deadlines.
“Gov-uk” in the domain name. Real gov.uk is reserved for UK government and only government bodies can register subdomains under it. gov-uk-childbenefit.com is a typosquat exploiting the visual similarity.
Spoofed sender ID “HMRC-CB” sounds plausible but real HMRC SMS sender IDs are simply “HMRC” or “GOVUK”.
How real HMRC Child Benefit communications work
Letters by post are the primary channel for Child Benefit decisions, reviews, and adjustments. The letter includes an HMRC reference number and a freepost return address.
Phone enquiries are made through the HMRC Child Benefit helpline on 0300 200 3100 (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 8am-4pm). You call HMRC; HMRC rarely phones you about Child Benefit.
Online services are accessed via www.gov.uk/child-benefit after signing into your Personal Tax Account on the GOV.UK gateway.
HMRC never asks for bank details by SMS or via a third-party verification page. Bank-account changes are made online after Personal Tax Account login or by writing to HMRC.
What to do if you’ve received a Child Benefit scam text
Don’t click any link. Even visiting the page tells the criminal your number is active.
Forward to 7726. The free UK spam-reporting service routes it to your network for blocking.
Report to HMRC’s phishing team by forwarding the SMS to 60599. HMRC actively monitors this number for impersonation campaigns.
Verify any genuine query by phoning the Child Benefit helpline yourself on 0300 200 3100.
If you’ve already shared bank details or ID
Call your bank’s fraud line immediately using the number on the back of your card.
Open a free CIFAS Protective Registration at cifas.org.uk — £25 for 2 years protects your credit file against fraudulent applications.
Check your credit report at Experian, Equifax and TransUnion for unauthorised applications.
Report to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk — crime reference number needed for subsequent claims.
Read our UK Recovery Guide for the full identity-protection playbook.