Unfortunately, scammers are taking advantage of current events with a significant increase in reported COVID-19 related scams and phishing emails aimed at gaining access to your personal and banking information.
The latest scam reported by Scamwatch involves fraudsters targeting Australians who have been financially impacted by COVID-19, by attempting to gain access to their superannuation.
What does the super scam involve?
These unsolicited callers or text messages are impersonating the government or well-known superannuation or financial services, requesting information about your super accounts, including offering to:
- Help you access your super
- Ensure you’re not locked out of your account
- Check whether your super is eligible for special benefits or deals
How can you protect yourself and your super?
Be wary of text messages or callers who claim to be from a government authority or, a superannuation or financial service claiming they can help you access your super.
If you’ve received a call, don’t give out any personal information and hang up. You can also verify their identity by calling the organisation directly by doing an independent search to find the super fund's phone number.
If you’ve received a text message, simply delete the message and don’t click any links.
What do I do if I think I’ve been scammed?
If you’ve provided information about your superannuation to a scammer, contact your superannuation provider right away. If you’ve provided personal or banking details, you should also contact us immediately on 1300 362 216.
We encourage you to remain alert during this time, especially as scams are likely to increase over the coming weeks and months.
To stay up to date with the latest scam information and tips on how to respond, visit scamwatch.gov.au
