Scams Awareness

Scams Awareness Week is an annual scams awareness campaign run by the ACCC on behalf of the Scam Awareness Network.

In 2025, the campaign will run from Monday 25  to Friday 29 August. The theme for this year’s campaign is ‘STOP, CHECK, PROTECT’

These 3 simple steps can keep us all safe from scammers.

A scam is a deceptive or fraudulent act, typically used for malicious purposes such as stealing personal information or money.

With the ever-growing world of technology improving every day it is important for everyone to be cautious of anything that is sent to them, especially if it seems suspicious.

It can be hard to identify scams. It is important to look out for the following common signs:

• The scammer will use urgency to try force the victim to act immediately. This includes claims such as your account has been hacked, there is a problem with payment or threatening to stop the service or charge a fine if you don’t act now.
• The message is asking you to make a payment or transfer money.
• There is a link sent in the message or call a number provided.
• The message asks for you to log onto an online account with your username and password or provide other personal information.

Scams can be sent in various types, a few of the examples include:

• Text/SMS scams
• Phone scams
• Email scams
• Social media scams
• Website scams
• In-person scams

These scams can appear in the form of:

• Online dating/Romance scams
• Investment scams
• Product and Services scams
• Threats/extortion scams
• Job/Employment scams
• Unexpected money
• Impersonation scams

An impersonation scam is where scammers pretend to be trusted businesses, friends or family to steal your money or personal information.

Impersonation scammers can reach you on all mediums such as text message, websites, social, media, email and phone calls.

Scammers often pretend to be government officials, well-known companies, charities, celebrities, law enforcement or even family and friends.

Impersonation scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated and therefore harder to identify;

• Scammers can use technology to make their calls appear to come from a legitimate phone number
• Their texts can appear in the same conversation thread as genuine messages from an organisation.
• Websites for legitimate organisations can be cloned to look like the real thing.
• Emails can be sent with fake sender addresses to appear to come from trusted sources.
• Social media profiles can be established using another person or an organisation’s details and images.
• Documents can be forged to make you think you’re dealing with a real person or business.

Impersonation scammers may know or claim to know some information about you and use this to convince you they are legitimate.

• You receive a message that asks you to click on a link that takes you to a webpage asking for your username, password, or personal information.
• You are asked to provide personal details or money urgently.
• An organisation that you think is real, tells you there has been an unauthorised transaction or asks you to confirm a payment that you didn’t make.
• A business asks you to use a different bank account and BSB from the last payment you made with them.
• You’re contacted by someone saying they are from a government department or law enforcement, and they threaten you with immediate arrest, deportation, or ask you to pay money.
• You’re asked to transfer money to an account to ‘keep it safe’ or for ‘further investigation’.
• A sale, investment or job offer looks too good to be true.

• Independently verify who you’re dealing with before you give money or personal information by either;
  • Contacting the person or organisation directly using contact details you’ve found yourself on the organisation’s official website.
  • Accessing the organisation’s secure, authenticated portal or app (never via a link).
• If someone you know sends a message to say they have a new phone number;
  • Try to call them on the existing number you have for them.
  • Message them on the new number with a question only they would know the answer to.  That way you will know if they are who they say they are.
• Watch out for slight variations in Caller or Sender IDS and web addresses like dots, special characters, or numbers.
• Do online research of people and organisations who you’ve only dealt with online before paying any money. Search the name online together with the word ‘scam’.
• Check the correct registration details of organisations through registers such as the Moneysmart Financial Advisers Register and the Australian Charity Register for Charities.

1. Act fast to prevent further losses
2. Get help to recover
3. Warn others and report the scam
4. Watch out for follow up scams
5. Get support

Once you have secured your details, you can help try to stop the scam and warn others by reporting the scam to the National Anti-Scam Centre via https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/  You can make a report to Scamwatch anonymously or on behalf of another person. 

You can also make an official report to the police online here (https://portal.police.nsw.gov.au/s/login/?ec=302&startURL=%2Fs%2F) .

• How well do you know your scams? Quiz - test your scam sense | Scamwatch
• Do you want to learn more about scams?  The Little Book of Scams | Scamwatch 
• For more information visit https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/