Senator Stephen Conroy, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy is warning businesses about an increase in the number of scam phone calls in Australia.
Queensland Police last month issued their own warning about scam phone calls coming from people who told victims they were calling from Microsoft or were working for another company on behalf of the software giant to delete virus infections on peoples computers.
“People can protect themselves from scams by applying common sense rules. If something being offered sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” Senator Conroy said.
Complaints about scam phone calls to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) have spiked in the last few months, increasing 1000 percent from 200 to around 2,000 calls per month.
“If people are targeted by a scam telephone call they should never disclose any personal or financial details and they should immediately hang up the phone.
“I would also encourage people to report the scam so that the ACCC and ACMA can investigate and take action against those responsible.”
Senator Conroy said the ACCC and the ACMA were warning consumers about scam telephone calls where callers:
- advise that the person’s computer is infected with a virus and request credit card details to fix the problem
- offer products, services or cash under fake government grants
- seek bank details in order to process a bank fee refund or tax refund
- offer to place the person’s number on the Do Not Call Register for a fee
- ask consumers, using a recorded message, to dial 9 for a ‘free’ holiday.
