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Online Scams

Internet scams continue to target innocent users of the Net, but there are ways to recognise scams from legitimate offers and places to lodge a complaint and seek advice if you feel you’ve been scammed.

Scamming – an age old practice using new technologies

For many years, people have been the subject of scams and hoaxes.  Swindlers, Hustlers, Charlatans, and Fraudsters, try to scam people out of their money, or some other precious commodity, or opportunity.

Scammers use the Internet in a number of ways to conduct scams.  For example:

  • promoting fraud through email
  • promoting free offers and pyramid schemes via a web site
  • creating fraudulent advertising materials that are displayed when searching the Internet

How scams occur on the Internet

A common Internet scamming tool is unsolicited email (i.e spam).  Spam is the email equivalent of junk mail or nuisance phone calls.

Many people can be targetted with spam, and the scammers believe that because they are sending out so many emails, someone will fall for their scam.

Example of a common scam – Online Auctions

Internet auctions have become very popular for consumers looking for bargains, rare collectibles, and hard to find objects.  However, online auctions have been the target of scams in the past. 

For instance, scammers often embed links in a spam email that if clicked on directs the user to a fake site, set up to look just like the real auction site.

At this site, the unsuspecting user is required to log in, provide personal information and password details.  From there, the scammers conduct fake auctions and fraudulently receive money.

In an effort to keep customers safe, many auction sites (such as eBay) often warn people against giving out any account details in an email.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (www.accc.gov.au) - Information on Internet auctions and related topics

How to spot a scam

With a little care you can recognise a scam.  Watch out for the following:

Online Adverts

Emails advertising ‘amazing’ products or services. Peruse the email contents to check for ‘unrealistic claims’, offers, and get rich quick schemes.

Chain Letters

Emails containing chain letters and promoting pyramid schemes. These types of emails usually ask you to forward it on to other people.

Opt-out Facility

Messages sent to a recipient who had agreed to receive mail but has subsequently opted-out and where an opt-out facility is provided but it is deliberately misleading or difficult to activate.

Valid email Address

Any email which does not have a valid address in the Reply To line.

Subject Line

The clues of a scam are often in the email subject line. Watch for strange symbols like ‘$’or ‘#’, words like free, promises of money, investment opportunities, love, friendship or good health.

Unrecognised Senders

Any messages that come from businesses or addresses you don’t recognise. Many of these addresses are bogus and are used for a specific campaign and then discarded.   Look out for messages where the sender isn’t clearly identified as well.

Recipient Greeting

Check if the email is addressed specifically to you or just has a general greeting. More creative spammers and scammers will use familiar terms to address you by using statements like “Hi, long time no see”, “Here’s this great offer I thought you’d love”, or  “You have been specially selected…”.

Pop-Ups

Do windows start popping up at random when you go to the web site? The web site may be designed as an online marketing trap, so extra caution is needed.

Dead Links

Are there dead links to pages that should be there, such as ones with terms and conditions, privacy notices, and contact details?

Online Forms

Look out for web sites offering prizes in return for you filling in surveys or forms or providing personal information.  It may simply be a technique used in an effort to secure your email address for use by online scammers.

Alarming Content

Any web site or email content that uses exclamation marks and CAPITAL LETTERS which aim to provoke the reader into taking up an urgent offer before it closes.

Unrealistic Offers

Any Internet offering that promises instant wealth, something for nothing, or a product or service that seems too good to be.

Privacy Policy

Web sites that do not contain a ‘privacy policy’.

Pay Now, Product’s on its Way

Web sites that request upfront payments in order to buy the product, or send the prize.

How to avoid being scammed

To avoid being scammed, there are some simple precautions that you should always take when using the Internet.

Don’t reply  

Firstly, do not reply to spam, as it shows your email address is active and therefore a target for further spam.  Unfortunately, once your email address is on a spam list, it is often impossible to remove it.

Unsubscribe Button

Never click on the unsubscribe button in emails from people or business that you don’t know.  This may open the door to you receiving more spam and hoax offers.

Avoid Attachments and Embedded Links

Never open any of the attachments or click on imbedded links as this may take you to a hoax site, or expose your computer to a virus.

Delete and Trash  

Always delete these types of emails or put them in your ‘junk mail folder’ and empty your trash can.  Set up spam filters.

Protect your Privacy  

Only give your email address and contact details to people you know and trust, and to legitimate reliable businesses or organisations.

Do Your Homework and When in Doubt, Don’t Buy

Never hand over your money or credit card details before doing your homework about a web site.  Once you hand over your money you may never be able to get it back so.

Web Site Precautions

Look at the structure of the web site. Does the website appear to load up correctly and all the basic features (such as linking) work? Check the URL and see if there are legal notices (such as copyright statements and terms of use, privacy policy etc.) listed on the page.

Type of Organisation

Can you tell from the web address what type of organisation owns the web site?  For example, a web site with an address ending in .gov.au is an Australian government website. 

Look for the Owners of the Web Site

Is it easy to find out the organisation or individual who created the website? Can you see their contact details?

Look at the Quality of the Content

Is it clear what the content is about and is it easy to understand? Is the spelling and grammar correct? Does the content appear to be organised well with headings and images used appropriately?

Source for some items: ScamWatch (www.scamwatch.gov.au)

Who do I Contact for Help?

There are a number of places you can contact about scams.

Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading Office (www.consumersonline.gov.au) in your State Office.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission

You can report Internet scams to the ACCC via its web site or by phone (business hours, Monday to Friday).

Australian Securities and Investment Commission

The Australian Securities or Investments Commission (ASIC) also deals with certain types of complaints about the contents of some spam messages, in particular relating to fraudulent conduct by Australian businesses.  The ASIC website outlines the types of complaints they deal with, and offers an online complaint form.

General Information on Scams and Consumer Affairs

Law Enforcement Agencies

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