Australians are warned the message could lead to identity theft or financial loss.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is warning Australians to delete a text message that advises recipients they have Centrelink payments ready to claim.

The text message claims to be a government alert from the Australian Tax Office.

It says that a Centrelink payment can be claimed by clicking an inserted link.

But the ATO has warned that it has received increased reports of scams since tax time.

“These scams encourage people to click on a link that directs them to fake myGov sign-in pages designed to steal their username and password,” the ATO advises on its website.

“Scammers use many different phrases to try and trick recipients into opening these links”

The Australian Tax Office warns that people should “not open any links or provide the information requested.”

“We won’t send you an SMS or email with a link to log on to online services. They should be accessed directly by typing ato.gov.au or my.gov.au into your browser.”

“While we may use SMS or email to ask you to contact us, we will never ask you to return personal information through these channels.”