New way Aussies trying to protect money from risk of cyber attacks

More than a third of Aussies are scared of having their card details stolen while online shopping, as people turn to new ways to protect their money. See how.

Australians are concerned about cyber security when it comes to shopping online, new research shows.

More than a third of Australians (35 per cent) reported feeling concerned about shopping online for fear their personal information and card details could be stolen, new research by Revolut, a global financial app, found.

Australian Cyber Security Centre’s latest report revealed Aussies made 76,000 cyber crime reports this year, up almost 13 per cent on 2021.

Of those fraud reports, 54 per cent were for online shopping and online banking.

Meanwhile Zip, a company that offers shoppers the flexibility to buy now, pay later, has seen a 58 per cent increase in its single-use cards over the past nine months in light of recent cyber attacks. 

Single-use Zip cards can be used by customers when the outlet they are shopping from does not provide a means of Zip pay.

Instead, customers can create a one-off card number, through their Zip account, that allows them to purchase goods without needing to hand over debit or credit card details.

Australian shoppers are turning to alternative payment methods for online shopping.

Debbie Wine, of Zip, said the single-use cards can only be used once to “protect our customers”.

“Customers are becoming more security conscious, especially after seeing large Australian companies become victims of cyber criminals,” she said.

Australians aged 25 to 34 years old were the largest users of the Zips’ once-off card option (39 per cent), closely followed by 35 to 44-year-olds (25 per cent).

New South Wales shoppers were the most prominent users (28 per cent) of the one-off online payment method, followed by Queenslanders (24 per cent) and Victorians (20 per cent).

West Australians followed at 10 per cent, then shoppers in ACT (8 per cent), SA (6 per cent), TAS (3 per cent) and NT (1 per cent).

Purchases at department stores and supermarkets were found to be the most popular with single-use cards.

Followed by travel agencies, electronic goods and clothing stores.

Purchasing groceries was the second most popular way shoppers used single-use cards.

Revolut Australia head of crime Nelson Yiannakou said while online shopping had grown “exponentially” since Covid-19 lockdowns, so too had fraudsters.

“Interacting with unfamiliar merchants and paying in multiple currencies requires shopped to be hyper vigilant about using a safe, secure and trusted financial service provider,” he said.

Mr Yiannakou said Revolut offered it’s customers virtual disposable cards, similar to Zip’s single-use options, to help reduce the risk of cyber crime.

“Virtual disposable cards are a safe and secure way for shoppers to pay for things with no compromise to user experience. Virtual card information can be regenerated as many times as the customer wants, each time with a new unique card number,” he said.

“What this means is customers are able to avoid using their actual physical card details with unfamiliar merchants, reducing the risk for them to be stolen.”

Ms Wine warned Aussies to be vigilant about online safety during sales in the lead up to Christmas, including Black Friday deals.

“Black Friday is undoubtedly one of the biggest and busiest retail sales days, and with scammers becoming increasingly sophisticated, our single-use card is absolutely something users should be taking advantage of,” she said.

“If you’re shopping online and you don’t see Zip as a checkout option, opt for Zip’s single use cards for an added layer of protection – they are also perfect for a situation where you don’t trust a merchant, like you’re booking an overseas tour, or buying from an overseas merchant.”

Ms Wine added: “Zip does not store customer banking credentials and we do not sell customer data to third parties”.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU THINK YOU’RE A CYBER ATTACK VICTIM

Research by leading cyber safety brand Norton found 59 per cent of Australians surveyed would have no idea what to do if their identity was stolen.

“We understand the impact this can have on people, how difficult it is to navigate and restore your accounts, if you become a victim of identity fraud,” Melissa Dempsey, of Norton said.

Norton suggests Australians who may be concerned about their personal data to be watchful of:

• Problems signing into accounts
• Unauthorised transactions on your accounts
• Unfamiliar charges on your bank and credit card
• Contact by debt collectors
• Unusual activity on your phone, and/or
• Receiving a notification that you account might be compromised.

Originally published as New way Aussies trying to protect money from risk of cyber attacks