Commercial and internet scams or fraud are common and often originate outside Australia. Scams have a devastating financial and emotional impact on many Australians. Detailed information about scams, what to look out for and how to protect yourself from scams can be found in The Little Black Book of Scams published by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Tel 1300 302 502, and the SCAMwatch website.
Many scammers approach you out of the blue asking for help, offering questionable business opportunities or pretending to be legitimate banks or businesses. Scammers only have one objective – to take your money. In some cases they do this by trying to confirm banking details such as passwords and account numbers. Genuine organisations don’t usually contact you out of the blue and ask for passwords or account numbers. Other scams claim you have won a lottery overseas or that you have inherited money from a long lost relative. You are then required to pay taxes and other processing fees to claim your prize.
Criminals have been known to seek details of 'safe' bank accounts overseas in which to transfer large sums of money. The bank account owner is promised a commission for receiving the money in their account which then has to be transferred on. Scammers may also provide fake cashier cheques for 'urgent' shipments of large quantities of goods, request sizeable fees for a fake government contract or to supply crude oil and extort money from individuals they have convinced to travel overseas for a business opportunity. Some scams offer employment overseas, with large salaries and luxury accommodation. Up-front payment for work permits, visa and immigrations fees is asked for in order to secure the employment.
Another reported scam involves phone calls, SMS messages and emails to relatives and friends in Australia sometimes from bogus hospitals or doctors overseas claiming that an Australian traveller has been injured and money is required to be sent for medical treatment. Your relatives and friends in Australia should make sure that the contact is genuine as this is a common method of extorting money. Treat any requests for money from overseas with caution. Check the story through a web search or call the organisation back but only through a publicly advertised number eg yellow pages or other reputable directories. Do not use the contact details the potential scammer has sent you or the organisation’s contact details given by the person requesting the information.
Australians have also been defrauded or had their lives endangered by bogus internet friendship, dating and marriage schemes operating outside Australia. These scams typically result from connections made through internet dating schemes or chat rooms. Once a virtual relationship develops, the Australian citizen is asked by their friend or prospective marriage partner to send money to enable travel to Australia or money to cover an emergency such as hospital visit or robbery. Once the money has been received or after repeated requests when there is no money left, the relationship is usually terminated and any chance of recovering the funds is highly unlikely. In some instances, foreigners who have travelled overseas to meet their friend or prospective marriage partner have been kidnapped and held to ransom.
There have been reports of scams targeting travellers to the USA. This involves the US Visa waiver program that requires an approved travel authorisation. This can be obtained online via the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), which is an online automated service available to citizens in certain countries, including Australia. The US Government charges a fee of US$14 for the mandatory ESTA. There are many websites claiming to be able to provide an ESTA, some charging more than US$14. There is also a concern that the personal details provided via these websites may involve identity fraud. Travellers are warned to be cautious as these websites can come up in an internet search and appear to be genuine. Information on ESTA and the Visa Waiver Program, plus a link to the official website, can be found on the Embassy of the United States in Australia website. See also our Travel advice for the United States of America.
If you are a victim of a financial scam, we advise you to contact your financial institution, obtain legal advice and not to travel overseas to seek restitution as there is a risk of physical assault from the perpetrators. Victims that have been defrauded and who travel to the originating country have had their lives endangered. Some victims have been killed.
Once money is sent overseas it is virtually impossible to recover, however you are encouraged to report scams, scammers and fakes to the Australian Government’s SCAMwatch website at www.scamwatch.gov.au or phone 1300 795 995.