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Criminals are offering fake no-interest loan schemes and financial assistance packages to those experiencing hardship, according to a government taskforce.
A warning has been issued flagging that criminals are now using a range of methods to target people experiencing financial hardship.
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The National Anti-Scam Centre has issued a warning about a new wave of scams where criminals impersonate trusted organisations and offer fake assistance to low-income earners and people in financial hardship.
This spike in criminal activity coincides with rising cost-of-living pressures, according to the government taskforce run by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC), with criminals pretending to be government agencies or charities such as Good Shepherd, Wesley Mission, and the Salvation Army.
The scammers then offer fake financial assistance in the guise of no-interest loan schemes, emergency relief, and rental assistance.
According to the taskforce, the end goal of the perpetrators is to steal money or uncover personal information – such as myGov usernames and passwords, bank account information, driver’s licences, or passport details – that can be used for other crimes.
Issuing the warning, ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe said: “Struggling Australians are being targeted in despicable ways by criminals. We are warning people who need financial assistance and those that provide it to be aware of these scams.
“In one alarming instance, scammers represented themselves as [a] reputable charity online advertising a no-interest loan to a couple. Believing the offer was genuine, the victims provided sensitive information, including their driver’s license, Medicare card, Pension Card, and myGov details. The scammers then diverted $1,000 from the couple’s Centrelink payments.
“Genuine support to those who are struggling is available, but we know criminals seek opportunities to take advantage of people in need.”
This warning follows another alert from the government taskforce issued last week regarding the rise in bank impersonation scams.
These scams operate in a similar way, where the victim receives unsolicited calls, emails, or messages from criminals claiming to be the bank, requesting they provide personal or financial information or transfer funds.
The sophistication of the scams is such that – in some instances – the call appears to come from the bank’s legitimate phone number or by sending a text that appears in the same conversation thread as genuine bank messages.
The taskforce is advising borrowers to call their lender directly on a number they have sourced themselves if they are in any doubt about the authenticity of the requests.
Scams in the spotlight
The broking channel has been urged to be on the lookout for a growing volume of scams and fraud in recent months.
In September, major bank ANZ outlined four steps every mortgage broker can take to protect their business and customers:
- Pause, evaluate, and verify communication whenever information is requested from a party.
- Activate multifactor authentication (MFA) across digital devices and online accounts to add an extra layer of security between data and cyber criminals.
- Turn on automatic software updates to address the weaknesses that come from outdated software, which can make devices vulnerable to cyber attacks.
- Avoid reusing passwords and change passwords often.
In a separate article, Laura Hartley, head of group security culture & advisory at NAB, said brokers should familiarise themselves with signs of suspicious activity to provide the first line of defence against cyber threats.
“The good news is that Australians become more scam savvy than they were a year ago, with new research from NAB Economics finding 70 per cent of people ignore suspicious calls and delete questionable looking emails,” Hartley wrote.
“But cyber criminals are also becoming more sophisticated in the tactics they use to deceive businesses.
“Brokers working with business customers should be especially vigilant.”
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