Impersonation scams
Never assume that someone you are interacting with is who they claim to be.
Con artists deceive you into believing they are representatives of reputable companies, banks, law enforcement, or other organizations. They may even pose as a member of your family or friend.
Technology is used by scammers to pretend that a real phone number is calling them. Their texts show up in the same chat thread as official messages from the company.
Warning signs it might be a scam
- 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.
- There is an urgent request for action, and you are asked to provide personal details or money quickly.
- 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.
- You’re contacted by someone pretending to be from a government department, regulator or law enforcement and they threaten 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’.
Steps you can take to protect yourself
- Check that a message is real by either:
- contacting the person or organisation directly using contact details you’ve found yourself on the organisations official website or,
- accessing the organisations’ secure, authenticated portal or app (never via a link).
- Immediately cut contact with anyone who tries to threaten or intimidate you.
- Don’t open or download any attachments or apps as these can install malicious software on to your computer or phone.
- Watch out for slight variations in Caller or Sender IDs like dots, special characters, or numbers.
- 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.
- Don’t click on links in text messages or emails.