Fraud Week targets online and real-world scammers

Stephen Withers
Monday, 02 March 2009 11:08

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

This is National Consumer Fraud Week - an inter-governmental effort intended to alert people to the activities of scammers.

Backed by the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce (ACFT), National Consumer Fraud Week runs from March 2 to 8, and  aims to alert people to common scams so they can protect themselves against the unscrupulous.

"Fraudsters are targeting Australians every day through the mail and the internet. It is important to remember, if an offer you receive looks too good to be true, it probably is," said the Minister for Broadband, Communications and Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy.

"One of the best ways Australians can protect themselves online is to sign up to the Stay Smart Online alert service. The service provides simple, up-to-date advice on online security threats and scams," he added.

The service delivers alerts about current threats and vulnerabilities, advisories about less critical issues, newsletters, and fact sheets.

People can also subscribe to SCAMwatch email alerts sent by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission whenever a new type of scam is detected or when a particular type of scam becomes commonplace.

SCAMwatch focuses on online and real-world scams.

What's on the SCAMwatch radar? See page 2.