Scam Alerts

Scam Alert! 

That urgent message from Qantas might not be real

Scamwatch is reporting an increase in scams where fraudsters impersonate Qantas to try and steal personal information and money.

What’s happening
Scammers are sending emails and text messages that appear to come from Qantas, often using official logos and branding to make them look legitimate. These messages typically create a sense of urgency, encouraging recipients to act quickly without taking the time to check.

Common messages may prompt you to:

• Claim a refund
• Access a special gift or offer
• Redeem loyalty points that are about to expire

Clicking the link will take you to a fake website designed to capture any information you enter, including login details and personal data.

What to watch for
Be cautious of unexpected messages, especially those that:

• Pressure you to act quickly
• Include links asking you to log in or provide details
• Look official but feel slightly off

If you receive a message like this, avoid clicking any links. Instead, go directly to the official website or app to verify the information.

Staying alert is one of the simplest ways we can all help protect ourselves. 

Under 16 social media ban 

Scamwatch warns about potential scams exploiting the new social media age restrictions. 

What’s happening

From 10 December 2025, some social media platforms will be restricted, by law, to people aged 16 and over. These laws require affected platforms to take reasonable steps to prevent anyone under 16 from creating or holding accounts. These measures are designed to protect young people from the risks and pressures associated with social media use.

Scamwatch has identified 4 potential scams that opportunistic criminals may use to take advantage of these changes.

Who’s at risk

• Young people and their families affected by the new social media age restrictions
• Social media users

What the scams might look like

Platform impersonation scams Scammers may pretend to be social media platforms or age verification providers, and ask you to verify your age or risk losing your account.

Government impersonation scams Scammers may pretend to be from government or law enforcement, claiming you have breached the new laws and threaten fines unless you provide proof of age.

Fake ID scams Scammers may offer fake IDs or access to age-verified accounts for a fee, targeting young people under 16 and their families.

‘Hi Mum’ scams Scammers might impersonate young people aged 16 or older, contacting their parents or guardians to claim they need help verifying their age to use a social media platform.

The Couch Scam – Don’t get taken for a ride

There’s a sneaky scam doing the rounds on Facebook Marketplace, targeting people buying or selling furniture — especially couches.

Here’s how it works:

If you’re selling:
A buyer gets in touch and seems keen to purchase your couch. They claim to have organised a courier and say they’ll pay you via PayID — but they send a fake payment receipt and then ask you to refund an “overpayment” or pay a courier fee first. The payment never arrives, and your money is gone.

If you’re buying:
You see a great-looking couch at a bargain price. The seller asks for a small deposit (often around $100) to hold it for you — but the couch doesn’t exist. Once the deposit is paid, the seller disappears.

Things to look out for

• Requests for deposits, courier payments or refunds via PayID or bank transfer.
• Sellers or buyers who refuse to meet in person or avoid video calls.
• Ads with stock photos, unusually low prices, or vague descriptions.
• Messages that move quickly off Marketplace to text, email or WhatsApp.

What to do

If you think you’ve been caught in a couch scam:

• Contact your bank immediately and report what’s happened.
• Report the scam to Scamwatch.
• On Facebook Marketplace, report the listing and block the scammer.

Remember, if a deal on Marketplace seems too good to be true — it probably is.

Have you been scambled? 

'Scambling' is slang for online gambling platforms advertised on social media and messaging app groups that trick people to visit a scam website to participate in gambling. 

Players are asked to transfer funds but 'winnings' are not paid. There are no player protections or guarantees, you don't get your money back. 

Things to look out for

• Gambling sites advertised on social media and messaging apps.
• Asking you to transfer money to a PayID.
• Check if the gambling site is registered with ACMA. If it is not listed, it is likely to be operating illegally and is a 'scambling' website.
• Participation commonly begins with a referral from an existing player who is paid for the referral. 

What to do

If you think you've been 'scambled', contact your bank and report what has happened. You should also report the scam to Scamwatch. 

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.