When Brendan Macarthur received an email from a lawyer in a UK legal firm, telling him he was the sole beneficiary of Gavin Macarthur – who had recently passed away in Scotland – he thought it was a mistake.
Although Brendan didn’t know a Gavin Macarthur, the lawyer assured him there was a distant relationship, providing Brendan with a death certificate and an affidavit from the ‘High Court of London’ confirming he was the next of kin.
His hesitation turned to excitement when he found out his inheritance was £150 000.
Brendan followed the lawyer’s instructions to claim the money, providing copies of his passport and driver’s licence to verify his identity and bank account details so the bank could transfer the funds.
Brendan even delayed a repayment on his mortgage so that he could pay the $8000 in taxes and legal fees the lawyer required.
Over a beer at the pub, Brendan mentioned his good fortune to a few mates. One said it sounded a lot like something he had seen recently on a television program, where a whole bunch of scammers had been busted in West Africa.
Brendan recognised the story and started to worry. He contacted the police and sought help from a community legal centre.
Brendan acted quickly and spoke to his bank before any more money was drained from his account. Unfortunately Brendan was unable to recover the $8000 he had already sent.
Brendan’s case is typical of the tens of thousands of Australians who lose hundreds of millions of dollars to scams every year.
‘Scams are designed to trick you into giving away your money or your personal details’, said Louise Sylvan, Chair of the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce speaking on the occasion of this year’s Fraud Fortnight campaign.
”Scams have a devastating financial and emotional impact on Australian consumers. Fraud Fortnight, which runs from 24 February to 8 March 2008, will seek to provide consumers with information and tips to recognise and avoid scams” Ms Sylvan said.
Scams contain great promises that try to seduce you by promising things like great prizes, true love or easy money.
Typically scammers behave in one or more of the following ways:
- Before they deliver anything, they will ask you for money or personal details such as your address, date of birth or bank account details which legitimate organisations often use to verify you.
- Many scammers pretend to be legitimate banks or businesses.
- They approach out of the blue with leaflets, letters, emails, websites or phone calls with requests that seem like the real thing.
- Then they’ll give a reason as to why you need to provide them with your personal details, like your credit card number, password, bank account number etc.
But genuine organisations don’t usually contact you out of the blue and ask for passwords or account numbers.
“So many Australians, regardless of background, age and income levels continue to fall prey to fraudsters and scammers,” said Ms Sylvan. “Increasingly sophisticated electronic, phone and postal scams have resulted in the need to devise national strategies to combat this issue.”
The Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce seeks to increase the level of scam awareness in the community, and educate consumers to protect themselves from scams.
Now in its third year, it is made up of representatives from 19 government agencies with responsibility for consumer protection, and involves joint participation from a diverse range of members from across Australia and New Zealand, including government agencies, community members, non-government agencies and private sector organisations.
“Research shows that all consumers can be vulnerable to losing money or their identity through scams that seduce them into actively giving money or information in exchange for a great offer,” Ms Sylvan said. “Consumers are also tricked into giving away money or details in the belief that they are conducting a transaction with a legitimate bank, authority or business,” Ms Sylvan said.
“There is a common belief that victims of scams are foolish and greedy people. This is not true. “Scams target all people.
“Scams succeed because they look like the real thing. Scammers are manipulative – they push the right buttons to produce the response they want.
“Many scams originate from outside Australia and once money is sent overseas it is virtually impossible to recover.
“This is why education and prevention strategies are currently the most effective way to deal with scams.”
Since scams and scammers adapt and change so quickly, education about common features of scams is more effective than warnings about particular scams.
Some consumers feel embarrassed about being caught by a scam, but they can help turn the tables by reporting them and not staying quiet.
Consumers are encouraged to report scams and report scammers and fakes to the federal government’s SCAMwatch website www.scamwatch.gov.au or phone 1300 795 995.
Consumers can also fill out a scams survey on the Australian Institute of Criminology website at www.aic.gov.au/research/fraud/acft/survey.html Gathering this information will help to improve the prevention, detection, investigation, and prosecution of scam offenders.
More information about scams can be found in The Little Black Book of Scams published by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Tel 1300 302 502 or visit their website www.accc.gov.au
Fraud Fortnight coincides with Global Consumer Fraud Prevention Month which aims to raise awareness of the dangers of fraud and scams. Fraud Fortnight also aims to educate the public on how to recognise fraud and scams, report them and stop them.
There are many ways that you can protect yourself from falling victim to scams – Protect yourself:
- DON’T respond to offers, deals or requests for your details. Stop. Take the time to independently check the offer.
- DON’T send money or give your credit card, account or other personal details to anyone who makes unsolicited offers or requests for information.
- DON’T rely on glowing testimonials: find solid evidence from independent sources (not those provided with the offer).
- NEVER respond to out of the blue requests for your personal details.
- ALWAYS type in the address of a website of a bank, business or authority - it’s safer.
- NEVER click on a link provided in an unsolicited email as it will probably lead to a fake website designed to trap you.
- NEVER USE phone numbers provided with unsolicited requests or offers as it probably connects you to fakes who will try to trap you with lies.
- ALWAYS look up phone numbers in an independent directory when you wish to check if a request or offer is genuine.
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