Online scams are prevalent in Australia, and they cost the economy a lot of money. Some people have lost significant amounts of money to scammers—even their life savings. Fortunately, the Australian government has free resources and support systems you can use to learn about and report online scams.
At Remitly, we care about your quality of life and safety in a new country. We’ve prepared this simple guide to teach you how to identify, prevent, and report online scams in Australia.
How to identify an online scam
An online scam occurs when someone tries to trick you into revealing personal details such as your credit card number over the internet. If the scammer proceeds to use your details for personal gain, such as stealing from your account, the issue escalates to fraud.
Identifying a scam is the first stage of staying safe. You won’t lose your hard-earned money or unknowingly reveal personal information when you successfully recognise a scam. You can also teach your friends and family these techniques to help protect them.
Although there are different types of scams, they often bear the same warning signs or red flags.
Generic greetings
Scammers avoid addressing you personally using your name. For example, you’ll receive an email or text message referring to you as “dear user,” “dear customer,” “dear sir/madam,” or “dear valued member.”
Legitimate entities like your utilities suppliers sometimes use generic greetings, especially for marketing campaigns, to send to a group of customers. So, confirm that the message is from their known email address or number to be sure that you can trust it.
Copycat email address
You’ll receive an email or text message from an address or number almost identical to the details of a legitimate business.
Repetitive information, also known as “clone phishing”
Be careful when you receive an email from the same person or company twice. A company may seem to have made a legitimate mistake and sent an email twice, but scammers use this trick by sending a second email using a copycat email address, to look like the original sender’s email.
You’ll receive the same email, with similar content and subject, which you’d earlier received from a legitimate source, pretending to have forgotten to include important information. The “new information” contains malicious links the scammers want you to click.
Urgency
Online scams create a sense of urgency, asking you to act immediately. You’ll have a time limit to act or else face certain consequences. For example, you’ll receive an email asking you to update your bank’s mobile application by clicking a malicious link, saying you’ll lose the account and money if you don’t.
Asking for sensitive information up front
Some scammers confidently ask you to submit sensitive information such as passwords, one-time pins (OTP), and credit card number details, including the CVV number.
Too-good-to-be-true deals
Australia has a high cost of living. It’s okay to look for deals to save money. Scammers know this and hope to entice you with too-good-to-be-true deals. Know the market value to assess how far off an offer is. For example, driving lessons cost an average of between $50 AUD and $80 AUD per hour. A “driving school” offering lessons for $5 AUD per hour is probably a scam.
Change in payment methods
Verify messages informing you of a change in payment details/methods—for example, an email claiming to be from your child’s school indicating a new account number for tuition fee payments.
Common types of online scams in Australia
There are various ways that cybercriminals attempt to scam people. Having an awareness of the types of scams will help you avoid falling victim to them.
Phishing
This happens when scammers trick you into believing the information you’ve received is from a trustworthy source, like your bank. You then click malicious links, revealing sensitive personal information or downloading malware (software used to damage or gain unauthorised access to your computer).
Fake job postings
These include employment scams that attract you with lucrative salaries and minimal requirements, such as earning a lot of money for doing little to no work. You’ll be asked to pay an upfront fee to get the job. With a bit of research, you’ll discover that the company is non-existent and has no website or social media presence.
You may also be contacted with an enticing offer for a job you never applied for.
Romance scams
These scams prey on your desire for an emotional connection. A scammer creates a fake profile on an online dating site, tricking you into caring for them, before they ask for money for fake emergencies.
Product and service scams
You’re offered prices unreasonably below the market price. You may also find fake adverts on real websites.
Investment scams
You may seek investment options to thrive in Australia’s economy and earn enough money to send back home. Don’t be lured into investments that offer returns that are above standard market rates. Some people have lost their life savings to this scam.
Text or SMS scams
SMS scammers send text messages asking you to act urgently by sending money or clicking a link. The sender’s number is almost identical to that of a legitimate person/business/government entity. These scammers usually have a few of your details.
Phone scams work like text scams, but the scammers call you first.
Unexpected money scam
Be cautious of messages claiming that you’ve won some money and need to send personal details or an upfront payment to retrieve it.
Threats and extortion scams
Scammers pretend to be from legitimate offices, like immigration, threatening to deport you, for example, unless you send some money.
The Australian government’s ScamWatch website has some detailed and helpful information about different types of scams.
How to report an online scam
Scammers will contact you via phone calls, email, text, social media posts, social media/online advertisements or websites, such as dating sites. Once you identify a scam, report it.
Importance of reporting scams
The National Anti-Scam Centre (ScamWatch) registered almost 250,000 scam complaints in 2024, amounting to losses of more than $318 million AUD. Authorities get data like this when you report incidents. They can then use the information to:
- Identify patterns
- Understand potential threats and use that information to warn other people
- Disrupt fraudulent activities. For example, they can trace an email address or phone number used to scam people, and arrest the scammers.
- Teach the public about new scamming techniques and how to avoid them
- Influence government policy. For example, free support services for scam victims who’ve suffered from identity theft.
What to do if you’ve been scammed
Take these steps:
- Stop talking to or engaging with the scammer immediately.
- If you’ve released your financial details to scammers, contact your bank or financial provider and ask them to stop all transactions.
- Cancel or reverse any payments, if possible.
- Reset your passwords.
- Update your security software, such as antivirus software, and run a scan to check for issues.
- Collect evidence, such as screenshots and voice recordings.
- Report the scammer on the platform where the scam occurred.
- Call or file a report with the relevant government department/authority.
Where to report online scams in Australia
The Australian government has avenues you can use to report online scams.
Reporting to ScamWatch
Visit their website and complete the online “Report a scam” form.
Using ReportCyber for cybercrimes
Alternatively, report an incident via ReportCyber. It’s an online platform operated by the Australian Cyber Security Centre’s (ACSC).
On the platform, you can report cybersecurity cases involving identity theft, malware, ransomware, cyber abuse, or online fraud.
Visit the website and fill in the details of the cybercrime. The ACSC will forward the case to the relevant government authority.
You can always check back in to view the status of your submitted report.
Other valuable reporting channels
- Call the Australian Federal Police assistance line, or file a report on their website.
- Visit your local police station.
- Specific government departments. For example, you can report Australian Taxation Office (ATO) impersonation scams by forwarding your case to an ATO-approved email address.
- Services Australia
- IDCARE
- Crime Stoppers Australia.
How to stay informed and protected
Scammers are becoming more and more sophisticated, finding new ways to steal personal information for impersonation (pretending to be you), to access your financial accounts to steal from you, and to get into your computer for ransom.
Protect your identity and finances
Stay informed on the latest tricks and protection measures.
- Use strong passwords/passphrases.
- Don’t use the same password or passphrase in all websites.
- Turn on multi-factor authentication.
- Don’t share your details online. Change your privacy settings to limit who has access to certain information, especially on social media platforms.
- Monitor your accounts/credit reports/bank statements for unusual activity.
- Only fill in your credit card information on safe websites. If the address begins with “HTTPS,” it indicates that it’s a secure website.
- Don’t use public WiFi to log into sensitive websites like your bank’s online banking platform or mobile application. Additionally, only use private, secure networks that you trust.
- Don’t save passwords or leave your account logged in on shared computers.
- Avoid writing your passwords on paper or other easily accessible material.
- Shred documents containing personal information before throwing them away/sending them for recycling.
- Report stolen wallets or personal documents immediately.
- Don’t click links or open attachments from unknown senders.
- Report suspicious activities through official channels as soon as possible, providing evidence where possible.
- Stay updated via government resources, e.g. subscribe to ScamWatch alert emails.
Access free support and resources
The Australian government and certain organisations offer free support and resources for individuals and businesses. To stay up to date on the latest online scams and cybercrime news and information, visit ScamWatch, IDCARE, the Australian Cyber Security Centre, and Services Australia.
FAQs
What is the golden rule of avoiding scams?
There are plenty of simple steps you can take to avoid falling victim to an online scam, such as not sharing your personal details online, and avoiding clicking on links or attachments unless you’re completely confident about the sender.
A simple rule to follow is not to believe everything you see. If you receive an offer that seems too good to be true, it probably is.
How do I report an online scammer in Australia?
There are various ways you can report an online scam in Australia, such as ScamWatch, ReportCyber, and the Australian Federal Police.
Is it worth it to report a scammer?
Yes, it is. Report a scam as soon as possible, and try to include as much evidence as you can.