ACCC warns of growing number of financial recovery scams
Scammers pose as debt recovery services and promise to recover lost funds, says the ACCC National Anti-Scam Centre.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has warned of a new scam campaign targeting Australians, this time posing as a form of recovery service to recover funds already lost to scams, for an initial fee or other cost. , of course.
These types of scams have increased significantly since December 2023, with 158 incidents reported to the ACCC’s Scamwatch program, an increase of 129 per cent on the previous six-month period.
And scams are expensive too. Those 158 reports total losses of more than $2.9 million, in some cases including the original scams from which victims attempt to recover funds. Older Australians, in particular, are targeted and are therefore the largest whistleblowing group.
“Money recovery scams are harmful and cruel. Criminals take advantage of people who have already been victims of a scam [and] They hope to get their money back. They are another example of scammers’ willingness to exploit people’s desperation at a vulnerable time,” ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe said in a statement.
“Scammers pose as trusted parties, such as government agencies, lawyers or even charities. We are also aware that criminals pose as victims and claim that a specific person or entity helped them recover their money.
“We are very concerned about revictimization, which can compound the financial and emotional damage caused by scams. For example, we know a person who was the target of multiple scams in a row. “What started as a romance investment scam was followed by a money recovery scam, which led to a remote access scam and, ultimately, identity theft.”
Scammers offer to recover funds for an initial fee or a percentage of the recovered funds, but in reality they only hope to obtain more personal information and funds. In some cases, Lowe said, victims responded to online ads from fraudulent websites.
“As part of our initial response, the National Anti-Scam Center has referred two websites used in recovery scams for takedown action. One has already been successfully taken down,” Lowe said.
“Scams are crimes, and criminals who prey on desperate people trying to get back on their feet are reprehensible. “Anyone can get scammed and that’s one of the reasons why it’s so important to draw attention to Scamwatch’s tips and resources.”
If you or someone you know has been a victim of a scam, please report it to Scamwatch immediately.
