Common Scams

It's important to understand common types of scams and how you can protect yourself against them.

• Online fraud

• SMS scams

• Spam

• Phishing

• Malware

Online fraud

Scammers place ads online that claim to be selling an item at a bargain price. In most cases, these fraudulent sellers are located overseas although they may pretend to live locally. Once you've paid your money they disappear and you can't trace them or the transaction.

Example: You see an item online that's being advertised for half the market price. You try to contact the seller but they'll only deal with you by email (because they're located overseas). You agree to buy the item and they insist that you use Western Union to transfer the money to their account. Once the transaction has gone through you don't hear from them again.

How to protect yourself:

• Be very wary of goods that are priced well below market rates – particularly more expensive items.

• Never use money transfer services such as Western Union to pay for an item.

• Make sure you speak to the seller on the phone and wherever possible don't make a payment until you see and inspect the item.

SMS scams

SMS scammers operate in a similar way to online fraudsters but initially contact the seller via text message.

Example: You receive an SMS from a new buyer who's really keen on the item you've advertised. They tell you that they're located overseas but they're really keen on the item and they'll pay for it using PayPal and have it shipped overseas. You receive a payment confirmation email and it looks like it's from PayPal but it's fake. The email requests a shipping payment from you and it includes a link to make a money transfer. You pay the shipping fee but then find out that the shipping company doesn't exist and your money has disappeared.

How to protect yourself:

• You should only deal with buyers and sellers who are located in Australia. If you receive an SMS from a buyer outside Australia, email us. Do not respond to SMS messages from international numbers.

Spam

Spam is electronic junk mail and it's a common way to receive malicious software. It's used by scammers to trick people into giving them money.

How to protect yourself:

Remember - if an offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Look for the following warning signs:

• The subject title of the email has nothing to do with the products on offer.

• The words in the email are spelt incorrectly or have apostrophes and spaces in the middle of them. This is done to try to avoid anti-spam filters.

• Don't open any spam. Delete it immediately and don't click on links within it or open any attachments.

Phishing

Phishing is an email or SMS scam. Scammers pretend to be from a trusted organisation and send you a message requesting that you verify your details or log-in to check your personal information. The message will include a link to a site that closely resembles the website of the organisation they're impersonating. Once you enter your username and password the scammer will use your information to access your actual account.

Some emails may even contain a program that installs itself on your computer and records your passwords and user names.

Example:You receive an email pretending to be from us, asking you to update your details. When you click on the link in the email you're taken to a website that looks just like ours but is in fact fake. You're asked to verify your username, password and credit card details. These details are collected and used by the scammer.

How to protect yourself

• Don't open attachments or follow links in emails from people you don't know.

• If you receive an email from us or another trusted organisation don't click on the links in their email to verify your account details. If you think there's a legitimate reason for you to log in, open your browser and go to their website rather than following a link.

• Don't use the same username and password for multiple accounts

Remember, we will never send you an email asking you to log in and provide credit card or other financial information.

Malware

Malware is software that installs itself on your computer. It's often used to collect your username, passwords and other sensitive information. At other times it might install a virus on to your system that can spread to other computers.

Malware is distributed by:

• Attachments in spam emails.

• Emails from infected computers (these may come from your friends' computers).

• Websites that are linked to emails.

• Infected files that are shared or downloaded from the internet.

Malware can work quietly in the background so sometimes people don't realise that it's in their system.

How to protect yourself

• Make sure your anti-virus software is up-to-date.

• Scan your system using your anti-virus software regularly.

• If you receive an email from a friend that appears odd or out of character don't open any attachments.

• Delete spam messages without opening them.

• Never open attachments in emails from people you don't know.

More information

Scamwatch is the ACCC's anti-scam website which has useful resources on the latest scams and what you can do to protect yourself.