Scam Alert!
Don't rent or sell your bank account for cash
The AFP (Australian Federal Police) are urging Australians not to rent or sell their bank accounts, they may be unwittingly acting as money mules and helping criminals to move money gained from illicit activity.
How it works
Criminals target potential money mules through social media, messaging or gaming platforms, chat forums, online advertisements and even in face-to-face meetings.
Money mules are individuals who are – knowingly or unknowingly – recruited by criminal syndicates to transfer illicit money in and out of their personal accounts to make the funds appear legitimate to authorities.
Criminal networks are also increasingly instructing money mules to move funds through cryptocurrency exchanges/ATMs (CATM) and global money transfers apps, as these platforms enable faster and more discreet transfers than traditional banking institutions.
In these instances, money mules are instructed to withdraw physical cash from their account and deposit it into a CATM, where the money is sent to a digital wallet controlled by the criminal.
According to Scamwatch, $141.7 million was lost to scammers via bank transfers last year.
What to do
Don't rent your bank account to a third parties or share your banking details with anyone.
If you're a victim:
- Stop all communication with the scammer.
- Contact your financial institution if you have transferred money or suspect unusual account activity.
- Report it to police using
ACCC phone numbers spoofed by scammers
The National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC) is warning Australians following reports that scammers have been impersonating phone numbers belonging to the ACCC in an attempt to steal personal information.
The ACCC and the NASC (which operates under the ACCC) have become aware of scammers using publicly available ACCC phone numbers, which are listed on the agency’s official website.
How it works
- The scammers claimed to be representatives of the ACCC and requested sensitive information over the phone.
- Scammers misused the ACCC acronym to impersonate an unrelated organisation and spoke in a language other than English.
- The ACCC phone numbers have been spoofed, which means that the scammers have disguised their phone number to make it look like they are calling from a trusted organisation, in this case, the ACCC. They then ask for personal information.
The ACCC and NASC will never:
- make calls from its reception numbers
- charge money for its services
- cold call or email to ask for your personal information like passwords, bank details or answers to security questions
- threaten or pressure you to stay on the line.
What to do
If you receive a call claiming to be from the ACCC where personal information such as passwords or bank details are requested, do not provide this information and hang up.
Be extremely wary of urgent requests asking you to act immediately, and never provide personal information if unsure. Do not click on any links or download attachments from messages unless you are sure it is from someone you can trust.
Small businesses targeted by money laundering scam
We’ve been alerted to a scam where small businesses are being used to help scammers launder money.
How it works
- A scammer gains access to a vulnerable person’s bank account and transfers a large amount of money into a small business bank account.
- The scammer then contacts the small business claiming that the transfer was a mistake and asks for the funds to be redirected to their account.
- The small business, wanting to fix what seems like a simple error, unknowingly becomes a money mule.
- Scammers will target industries where high value transactions are common.
- Many small businesses want to act quickly to avoid issues with customers and reconciliation.
What to do
If you receive a suspicious refund request, ask the third party to contact their bank and follow the process for the recovery of mistaken payments. Do not send money elsewhere without verifying through your own bank.
Stay alert- and protect your business.
