Most common scam calls and how to prevent them

So far this year over 83,000 Australians have reported losing more than $52 million to scam phone calls. Watch out for these common scams.

There have been 214 million scam calls blocked since rules requiring telcos to detect, trace and block the nuisance calls were introduced in December last year.

More than half of the scams reported to ScamWatch are via phone.

So far this year over 83,000 Australians have reported losing more than $52 million to scam phone calls.

In particular, there are common phone scams being used in Australia.

One relates to the Australian Tax Office scam that involves people receiving calls that appeared to come from a legitimate phone number used by the ATO – which is called “overstamping” or “spoofing”. Telcos are using software to identify calls using ATO numbers and block them.

The Wangiri, which is Japanese for ‘one ring and drop’, sees victims receive a missed call, often from an international number. When they call back, the call is charged at a premium rate.

Over 83,000 Australians have reported losing more than $52 million to scam phone calls. Picture: iStock

Evidence suggests the majority of scam traffic originates from overseas and Aussie telcos are required to work with international carriers to block international call scams.

More than 159 million scam calls were stopped between March and June this year, with 75 million ‘spoofing’ scam calls and 23 million Wangiri scam calls.

Federal communications minister Paul Fletcher said the 214 million blocked calls are evidence that the Reducing Scam Calls Code is working.

“Scam calls are a serious problem. At best, scam calls are annoying. At worst, scam calls can have damaging financial consequences for victims,” he said.

Never give out your personal information or your bank details. Picture: Supplied

WHAT TO DO TO PREVENT SCAM CALLS

Do not provide financial or personal details to anyone who asks unless you are completely certain about who is contacting you.

1. Never give out your personal information or your bank details.

2. Double check contact details through an independent source, like a bill or through an online search.

3. Don’t be tempted to click on links that have been sent to you out-of-the-blue.

4. Hang up and if needed, call the organisation back using a number on their website or in a public directory.

5. Visit the Scamwatch website for further information about how to recognise, avoid and report scams. You can subscribe to the free Scamwatch Alert Service on the website.

6. Consider using an answering machine or other commercial call blocking device. These can be used to screen incoming calls to determine whether you wish to answer them or not, and many can block international callers or withheld numbers.

If you’ve sent money or shared your banking or credit card details, contact your bank immediately. Picture: Getty Images

WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE BEEN CONTACTED BY A SCAMMER

1. If you’ve sent money or shared your banking or credit card details, contact your bank immediately. They may be able to stop or reverse a transaction, or lock your account.

2. If you have lost money or your identity has been stolen, contact the police.

3. If you’ve given your personal information to a scammer, visit Idcare, Australia and New Zealand’s not-for-profit national identity and cyber support service. They can work with you to develop a specific response plan to your situation and support you through the process.

4. You can report scams to Scamwatch online. The information received by Scamwatch is used by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to keep Australians informed about scams, to monitor scam trends and find innovative ways to disrupt scams.

5. You can also report scams and instances of fraud to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN) online. The ACORN is a national policing initiative of the Commonwealth, State and Territory governments, which allows the public to securely report instances of cybercrime online. Once a report has been submitted, the ACORN will assess whether the report should be referred to law enforcement agencies for consideration and possible investigation.