ATO, federal police in privacy raid

Federal police and tax officials have raided the home of a department whistleblower over allegations he broke privacy and secrecy laws to access taxpayer information.

"Today, swift action was taken, in the execution of a search warrant against an individual in Adelaide, to secure information which we believed was obtained contrary to our secrecy obligations," the Australian Taxation Office confirmed in a statement on Wednesday.

Whistleblower Richard Boyle was the target, according to Fairfax and the ABC, who had been working with him on an investigation into the ATO's powers.

They claim the warrants allege Mr Boyle took originals or copies of taxpayer information or photos of ATO computer screens or emails.