KEY POINTS:
- Australia’s communications watchdog has revealed the top three phone scams.
- Fake calls from Amazon, NBN and banks top the list.
- The watchdog is urging consumers to be vigilant.
If you’ve received a dodgy phone call from someone purporting to be from Amazon recently, you’re certainly not alone.
Fake calls about issues with your Amazon account claiming money will be taken from you if you don’t provide personal information are the leading phone scam, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) says.
Banking and finance impersonations asking you to verify your identity via personal information after alleged suspicious activity in your account ranks second, while scam callers impersonating an NBN technician are third.
ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said consumers had to be vigilant when dealing with companies in any setting.
“All five of the top reported scams impersonate trusted and well-known businesses, with scammers often displaying a fake number or sender information on your phone to make the contact look legitimate,” she said.
“Many businesses clearly state they will not contact you out of the blue or send messages with links seeking financial information or personal details, so always treat these calls with caution.”
Amazon said it would continue to invest in protecting customers from such scams.
“Amazon will never ask for credit card information to verify your identity before helping with a customer service issue, ask for payment over phone or email, request that you purchase a gift card for any service, or download or install any software,” the company said.
“Customers should report any suspicious calls and emails to Amazon so we can investigate and take action.”
Amazon has launched a self-service reporting tool customers can use if they experience such a scam.
Telstra and eBay impersonators round out the top five scams in the past three months.
ACMA is working with telcos to try to reduce the number of scam calls.
“In December 2020 we introduced new rules requiring telcos to identify, trace and block scam calls. To the end of September, telcos have stopped more than 800 million scam calls reaching Australians,” Ms O’Loughlin said.
“In July this year we brought in new rules to combat the growing problem of SMS scams. We are actively monitoring the effectiveness of the new rules.
“Early indications show promising results, with nearly 48 million scam SMSs blocked from July to September this year.”
