ACommBank fraud and scams forum held in Mount Gambier last week attracted more than 50 people interested in learning more about business safety.
The attendees joined the local team to hear from CBA experts about protecting themselves and their businesses from scams and fraud.
The event featured two of CommBank’s fraud and scam experts who shared insights on the types of scams they’re seeing, impacts of scams on Australian consumers and businesses and information on what security options are available to protect individuals and local businesses.
It was revealed on the night that nearly everyone in the room had received an email, text message or phone call in attempt to be scammed.
Speakers included CBA Fraud and Advisory senior manager James Fleming and CBA Industry, Intel and Disruption fraud analyst Kayla-Maree Oshana.
Mr Fleming told the group that a recent report by the ACCC revealed that in 2022, Australians lost over $3b to scams, with $569m worth of scams reported to Scamwatch, which was almost 80% high than the previous year.
“Data shows the highest impact ages are 65+ in both value of the scam and volume of scams – although everyone is impacted,” he said.
“According to Scamwatch the top three scams are investment, romance, and false billing which is also known as Business Email Compromise.
“The overall figure for scam losses is a lot higher, as many people do not report scam incidents for instances due to embarrassment, shame or fear.”
Ms Oshana said that it was very likely that scammers were going to play on emotions.
“They are very good at manipulating your emotions in order to exploit, particularly when they catch us at our most vulnerable times,” she said.
“They are also very opportunistic and use timing tactics, such as catching us out of the blue, or casting wide nets hoping to catch people at the perfect time e.g. order an item online, two days later you are receiving a text advising of your parcel being held.
“These interactions also often utilise creating a sense of urgency, we are likelier to make a mistake if we are feeling pressured or emotional.
“Scammers are very sophisticated, well-funded, and even creative – they know how to research, they know how to accumulate our details from various different sources and then use this data to make themselves appear super genuine – they are great impersonators, who take the time and are well versed in their chosen industries policies and procedures.
“Scams can look like a genuine businesses or opportunities – official-looking documents, professional websites, ‘experts’ well-versed in industry or technical speak.”
ALWAYS
Protect your identity – your personal details are private and valuable; keep them that way
Know who you’re dealing with – take time to do some research, even if the people or organisations seem trustworthy
Confirm new account details over the phone with suppliers
Remember… If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is
NEVER
Download apps or programs to your phone or computer if someone asks you to.
Give your banking credentials or one-time passwords to anyone, including someone from the bank over the phone or over the internet
Click on links or open attachments from unsolicited emails or SMS’
Make payment by unusual methods – big companies do not need payments via gift cards, cryptocurrency, or payments to personal accounts
