SCAM SPOT: What’s trending?

James Thornhill
02:00pm October 29 2024

Community awareness around fraud and scams is increasing, and that’s a good thing.

However, it’s also something the scammers are looking to exploit by luring people into taking actions to protect themselves which unwittingly have the opposite effect. 

That’s where bank impersonation scams can be particularly effective, and the scams team at Westpac continues to see people falling for these.  

In one version, a customer receives a call from someone purporting to be from their bank warning them of a security breach. 

As a result of the breach, the customer is informed that some unauthorised transactions have been made from their account. The bank impersonator is quick to reassure them that they will be refunded and the compromised account closed - they just need to follow a few simple steps.

These usually involve the customer providing login credentials and security codes, giving the scammer access to their account.  

It’s not just banks that the scammers are impersonating. We’re also seeing cases where the caller claims to be from a popular online marketplace saying they have detected suspicious activity on a customer’s account.

In order to safeguard the account, the customer is coached into providing remote access to their device and sharing their Internet banking details. 

These scams work by playing on the individual’s legitimate security concerns and their desire to protect themselves.  

It pays to be wary of any unsolicited call warning you of a scam attempt or a security breach, even if the caller claims to be from an organisation you are familiar with. If the remedy involves you disclosing sensitive personal information, that’s another red flag. Such requests should be verified independently by calling the organisation yourself on a trusted number. 

Overall, Westpac is seeing a positive trend in scams, with enhanced security measures and better education helping to reduce losses. Customer net scam losses in the year ended Sept. 30 were down nearly 30 per cent on the previous year, with the number of scam cases down 26 per cent. 

Over the past twelve months, Westpac has introduced the Verify and SaferPay security features in the banking app and in online banking.

Westpac Verify alerts customers to a potential account name mismatch when entering the details of a new payee, while SaferPay asks the customer a series of questions about new payments that are detected to have a high scam risk.

The bank will also roll out its SafeCall feature in coming months. This will enable registered customers to receive verified branded in-app calls – another means of combating bank impersonation scams.

For more information on how to spot and avoid bank impersonation scams, check out Ben Young's Scam Spot video: SCAM SPOT: Beware bank impersonators

James Thornhill

James Thornhill was appointed as editor of Westpac Wire in May 2022. Prior to joining the bank, he was a business and financial journalist with more than two decades of experience with international newswires. Most recently, he was a resources correspondent for Bloomberg, covering the mining and energy sectors, and previously reported on a broad range of topics from economics and politics to currency and bond markets. Originally from the UK, he’s had stints working in London, New York and Singapore, but is now happily settled in Sydney.

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