Scams on the rise
By VW Bro Alan Gale
Beware of scams Scams have become a lot more sophisticated in recent years and they’re earning thieves billions.
M
ike* is an intelligent man, he was formerly a banker and is pretty up to date with technology and the internet.
He got a phone call from an NBN technician who said remote access to his computer was needed to sort out internet issues and upgrade his modem so it would operate more effectively. Mike had been having problems with the NBN and had lodged a complaint, so he followed the instructions over the phone, gave his computer details and permission for remote access. He was locked out and by the time he woke up to what was happening and pulled the plug, it was too late. A large amount of money was stolen and so was his identity. It took a couple of months and a lot of pain to sort out. His bank was sympathetic and he ended up only losing a relatively small amount. You may laugh at Mike, or at what you think are ridiculous attempts at scamming (remember the Nigerian Princes?) but they work. That’s why they are prolific. Scamming has moved a long way from Nigerians emailing, seeking help with a transaction, but the fact they kept coming showed they found suckers. Now, there are
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September 2021
If you get an email or phone call asking you to click and log in, be very suspicious.
large call centres dedicated to fraudulent phone calls. It is a sophisticated, worldwide, multi-billion dollar industry stealing more than $600 billion a year world-wide, according to the US-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says in its recently released 2020 Scamwatch Report Australians lost more than $851 million to scammers last year. ‘Scam victims reported the biggest losses ever seen, but worse, we expect the real losses are higher, as many people don’t report these scams,’ ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said. ‘Unfortunately, scammers continually become more sophisticated and last
year used the COVID-19 pandemic to scam and take advantage of people from all walks of life.’ Last year, health and medical scams increased more than 20-fold compared to 2019, accounting for over $3.9 million in losses, she said. Losses to threat-based scams increased by 178 per cent to $11.8 million, and there were more than $8.4 million in thefts by remote access scams like Mike’s, an increase of over 74 per cent. Phishing (fraudulent emails seeking to fool people into providing personal information) is thriving, especially through government agency impersonation. There were over 44,000 reports of phishing scams, representing a 75 per cent increase, Ms Rickard said.
What to look out for The ACCC has this advice: R Be Cautious: You have been taught this! If you get an email or phone call asking you to click and log in, be very suspicious. Contact the real organisation through a verified site or phone number and ask for confirmation. R Be Alert: Uninvited contacts from people or businesses, by phone, mail, email, or social networking
Integrity – Loyalty – Respect Freemason
