Phishing scams involve fraudsters impersonating a company that you know and trust with the goal of stealing your personal information. These types of scams are one of the most common in Australia and according to Scamwatch resulted in a loss of over $1.6million last year alone.
With phishing scams becoming increasingly sophisticated, we encourage you to stay informed and remain alert to help ensure you protect your personal information.
How do phishing scams work?
Scammers running phishing scams will commonly pose as your bank, utility provider, government department, or even law enforcement. They may contact you by phone, email, or even social media in an attempt to gain access to your personal information or banking details.
How do I spot a phishing scam?
There are a few key things to keep an eye out for, including:
- Contact from email addresses that seem unusual (i.e. close to a well-known brand name but not exactly right)
- Communications requesting you to provide personal information such as bank account details, credit card numbers, and online banking passwords
- Spelling mistakes or inconsistencies during emails or phone calls
- Messages that appear very enticing or threatening
- You may be offered a reward for your assistance or completion of a survey, but asked for your card or bank details to charge you a processing fee or postage fee to receive the reward
Did you know?
There is an increasing number of fraudsters claiming to be from government departments or law enforcement agencies. Often these individuals will tell you not to notify anyone they have contacted you as it is part of an ‘ongoing investigation’ and will ask you to provide sensitive information or send funds to a specific account in order to ‘assist in catching a criminal’.
How do I protect myself?
The best form of protection is to be informed and aware. Here are some tips to help you get started:
- Never click on links or open attachments in emails from people you don’t know
- Don’t provide your personal information to someone over the phone unless it is a trusted number, or you called the organisation using a phone number from a trusted source
- Use a spam filter to block emails from suspicious senders
- If you have received a questionable message, contact the organisation yourself to verify its legitimacy
- If something seems to good to be true, it probably is
What to do if I’ve been scammed?
If you think you’ve fallen victim to a scam, please contact us as soon as possible. You can also report it on scamwatch.gov.au so that others can be warned of current scams.
Remember, MOVE Bank will never ask for your internet banking password. If you’ve provided your password to someone else, please let us know immediately on 1300 362 216.
Fraud statistics from: www.scamwatch.gov.au/
