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Scamming survey
is the real thing
The Australasian Consumer Fraud Task Force (ACFT) and the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) are seeking the most up-to-date information on fraud and scam trends in Australia through their annual online survey.
Principal Criminologist at AIC, Russell Smith said the two organisations wanted as much consumer fraud information as possible.
“Whether it is about fraudsters ringing from an overseas call centre trying to con money from householders, or email advance fee fraud scams, and even fraudulent requests for money by traditional post,” Dr Smith said.
| Plan to track fraud and scam trends |
“If you have come in contact with such a consumer scam, or know someone else who has, please take the opportunity to fill in our short, confidential survey.”
He said last year’s survey showed a sharp increase in people experiencing approaches by scammers and an increase in the use of landline phones (from overseas call centres) and SMS to try and scam victims.
“The key to fighting scams is to provide consumers with information about how to recognise and avoid scams,” he said.
Deputy Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Chair of the ACFT, Michael Schaper said the survey would increase knowledge of how scams worked and help with more effective warnings for consumers.
“The taskforce would like to know about any scams that you have received and how you have responded to them,” Mr Schaper said.
The survey can be found at this PS News link.
Edition 150, 26 January 2012
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