9 stories this week:
New ID check anti-scam rules apply from today – 30 June 2022
New rules to protect consumers from scams that target customer interactions with telcos came into force on 30 June 2022. The rules introduced by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) are designed to prevent unauthorised access by scammers to people’s telco services and personal information.
https://www.nationaltribune.com.au/new-id-check-anti-scam-rules-apply-from-today/
Woman loses $35k to scammer using Westpac’s phone number – 1 July 2022
Article explains how Jess Ridley was scammed by a third-party imitating Westpac telephone numbers. The TV presenter was conned out of $35,000. According to the Australian Communications and Media Authority, call line identification over-stamping, where the person calling you displays a different number from the one they are calling from, is legal unless it is being done for unlawful or malicious purposes. This is called caller ID spoofing.
CBA wants cross-industry code to reduce scam risk – 4 July 2022
CBA wants a new scam code being developed by Treasury to include banks, digital platforms, telcos, crypto exchanges and other payments providers to make sure the costs of growing levels of fraud are shared equitably. The bank has also introduced stricter transaction authentication processes in its banking app.
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Scammers stole over $2 billion from Australians last year – more than double 2020’s total: ACCC – 4 July 2022
Australians lost more than $2 billion to scammers in 2021, the ACCC estimates. This is more than double the amount lost the previous year. The increase was driven by a rise in crypto investment scams and pyramid schemes.
https://www.itnews.com.au/news/australian-businesses-lose-227-million-to-scams-582162
‘Placate her anger’: investigation dismisses allegations of domestic violence against Queensland police officer – 5 July 2022
A Queensland police whistleblower said the police chose not to pursue credible domestic violence allegations against a serving officer, after dismissing his wife as having “mental health issues” and needing to be “calmed down”. The whistleblower, a former senior sergeant, has made an unpublished submission to a Queensland inquiry into police culture and the handling of domestic violence cases.
Prosecution of whistleblower lawyer Bernard Collaery dropped after decision by attorney general – 7 July 2022
The Attorney General, Mark Dreyfus, has dropped the prosecution against Witness K’s lawyer, Bernard Collaery, for allegedly revealing spying on Timor-Leste. Collaery was charged with unlawfully disclosing information about an Australian Secret Intelligence Service mission to bug the government offices of Timor-Leste.
Canberra men found guilty of conspiring to manipulate recruitment processes for IT staff in the Department of Finance – 7 July 2022
Abdul ‘Alex’ El-Debel and Raminder Kahlon who were accused of conspiring to manipulate the recruitment processes for IT staff in the federal Department of Finance have now been found guilty by a jury in the ACT Supreme Court.
Early detection crucial in stopping BEC scams – 7 July 2022
Research by Cofense Intelligence has revealed that Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams attempt to establish trust with targeted employees over multiple emails. Great article that describes key signs on how to spot fraudulent emails.
Former Theranos president Sunny Balwani found guilty of fraud, conspiracy – 8 July 2022
A US jury has convicted former Theranos president Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani of defrauding investors and patients about the blood testing startup that was once valued at $9 billion. Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos were accused of lying to investors about their machines’ ability to run a broad range of tests from a few drops of blood.
