1 in 3 scams happen by phone

Scam calls are more than just annoying! In 2023, phone scams cost Australians an enormous $141 million in losses. 

Scammers don’t discriminate. They target everyone, including veterans and families. No-one is too smart to be scammed. 

Scammers will often call claiming to be from a government department or agency, law enforcement, investment company, law firm, bank, telecommunication provider or from another reputable organisation. 

Scammers are shrewd and come across as being genuine and sincere. They can use sophisticated technologies along with surprise and clever tactics to trick their victims, so they get what they want: often your money or your personal details. 

They might have ‘some’ personal information about you that is publicly available or that has been exposed in a data breach. They may use this information to convince you to give them additional information. 

Often scammers will make their reason for contacting you sound ‘urgent’. Their aim is to get you to act quickly. They may try to convince you to give them remote access to your computer, give them your bank account details, or even transfer money to a bank account.

To help you to spot and stop phone scams you should:

• be cautious about calls and messages received from private numbers and numbers that you don’t know
• not call back unknown or international phone numbers, or text/SMS numbers that start with 19xx, 
• search unknown numbers online, as they might be reported as being linked to a scam
• never give personal information to people you don’t know 
• not be rushed into making decisions or to take actions quickly
• be careful about how much you share on social media or in other public forums (Scammers might access and use this information to trick you into believing their call is real.)
• be cautious if you’re not sure if a call is legitimate. (Hang up and call back using the organisation’s official contact details – not the details a potential scammer gives you over the phone or in a message.)

If you think you have been scammed, tell your bank and phone company immediately. Scams should also be reported to Scamwatch