Anthony White

Scam losses decreased in 2023 despite reports increasing, according to the latest Targeting Scams report out today from the ACCC's National Anti-Scam Centre.     Sign up to a free webinar to learn about common scams and cyber threats, red flags to look out for and how you can protect yourself, your loved ones and your business.   While losses were down 13% nationally to $2.74b, there’s more to do across industry to stop the crime.   We’ve seen a decrease in NAB customer losses between October and December 2023 compared to the same period the previous year, despite customer reports of scams continuing to grow.    Many of the themes and trends in report reflect the experience of our customers who have been scammed or colleagues across the bank who are working every day to stop the crime.    It’s clear initiatives like removing links from text messages, making it harder for criminals to impersonate bank phone numbers, blocking payments to some high-risk crypto platforms and introducing payment alerts to the NAB app and Internet Banking are having an impact.      We can, and will, do more. Chris Sheehan Laura Hartley

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NSW Police partners with ID Support NSW to enhance data-sharing, aiming for quicker responses to identity theft amid rising cybercrime. The move follows uncovering 14,000 stolen ID documents linked to fraud schemes. 🔒📄🤝 #CyberSecurity #IdentityTheft #DataProtection

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Total Tools, an Australian hardware and tool retailer, has announced a data breach that may have exposed the information of approximately 38,000 customers. The breach was identified after the company noticed suspicious activity within its systems. A third-party cyber forensics team has since confirmed the potential compromise of customer data, highlighting the seriousness of the incident. This breach follows similar security issues faced by other retailers, such as Bunnings Warehouse, which experienced a data leak affecting its customers over two years ago. In that case, the personal details of customers using contactless pick-up were compromised. Additionally, FlexBooker, a third-party software provider, suffered a significant breach in December 2021, exposing the information of 3.7 million customers, which in turn prompted Bunnings to alert its own customers about the potential risks. In response to the incident, Total Tools CEO Richard Murray emphasized the company’s commitment to customer safety, advising affected individuals to take precautionary measures to protect their information. Total Tools has reached out to impacted customers, implemented enhanced cybersecurity protocols, and notified relevant authorities, including the Australian Cyber Security Centre. The company assures its customers that their safety is a top priority and that they will provide updates as more information becomes available. #DataBreach #CyberSecurity #CustomerSafety #TotalTools #PrivacyMatters #CyberAwareness #DataProtection #BreachResponse, #StaySafeOnline #InformationSecurity #CustomerTrust #DataLeak, #IncidentResponse #ProtectYourData #AustralianRetail

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🌐 Cybersecurity is a hot topic this month. It's NZ Cyber Smart Week from 21-27 October 2024, and it was highlighted in the recently released 2025 IIA Risk in Focus Report: Cybersecurity as the #1 risk for internal auditors globally! 🛡️ Cybersecurity is at the forefront, driven by Digital Disruption, and here’s why: - Business opportunities & the high risk of missed potential   - Balancing financial costs with benefits   - Public opinion & strong stakeholder demand   - Social impact & ethical concerns   - Current & future regulations and compliance  Stay ahead of the risks! To learn more on the above, select the below links: NZ Cyber Smart Week - https://www.cert.govt.nz/ IIA Risk in Focus Reports - https://lnkd.in/dkPYKtT3 #CyberSmartWeek #IIARiskInFocus #Cybersecurity #DigitalDisruption #InternalAudit #RiskManagement

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The ABA welcomes the release of new data from the National Anti-Scam Centre showing scam losses continue to fall. Losses reported to Scamwatch in the 2024 March quarter were down by 10.8% compared to the previous quarter. Whilst losses reported to the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange fell by 41.2%. Whilst it’s encouraging that losses are falling, Australians are still losing too much money to scammers. Our industry is pushing ahead with implementing our Scam-Safe Accord which will set an even higher standard of protection by banks to protect consumers from scammers.   However, better protecting Australians from scams can only be achieved if every part of the scams chain leans in as hard as they can. Banks and the telcos have said they will back the Government’s mandatory scams code, and social media platforms should also do the same. To read the full media release, click here: https://lnkd.in/gipecX8D #AusBanking

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𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗱 🛡️ Join us on day 2 at the Australian Institute of Credit Management conference as we cover practical strategies for balancing fraud prevention and customer experience. An insightful session not to be missed with Tehani Legeay our GM Identity & Fraud, Digital & Channels. Day 2 program here: https://bit.ly/3YrrIKu #Fraud #fraudprevention #Combattingfraud

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Have you checked out our online Fraud Prevention Centre? We take the privacy and protection of our Members and their data very seriously, and we want to remind you about the importance of staying vigilant when it comes to your online security. 🛡️ Visit our Fraud Prevention Centre for helpful tips and advice on avoiding common fraud and scams, and learn how to keep your personal and financial information safe 👉 https://hubs.la/Q02Mf6Ly0 Your security is our top priority! Together, let’s ensure your account stays safe from potential threats. 🔐 #TrulyLocalBanking #FraudPrevention #OnlineSecurity

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🚨 The healthcare sector in Australia is one of the most targeted sectors by Cyber criminals at the moment. Diabetes WA, the peak body for diabetes in Western Australia has suffered a security breach. Hackers have listed on the darkweb the following data sets for sale containing: name, address, birth date, email, telephone number, marital status, Aboriginal status, Medicare number, referring doctor, and type of diabetes. Uplifting your security posture is crucial to avoid becoming the next headline.

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Customers on low incomes will be refunded more than $28 million, after banks were found to have knowingly kept them in high-fee accounts. An ASIC investigation found four Australian banks systemically charged high fees to those customers who could least afford it. ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland said the ANZ, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, CBA and Westpac kept at least two million Australians on low incomes, including many relying on Centrelink payments to make ends meet, in high-fee accounts. Commissioner Kirkland said the banks had caused financial distress through avoidable fees and complicated bank processes, often creating barriers for regional and remote consumers. He said banks knew many of these customers on low incomes were in inappropriate high-fee accounts. “Before our review, most banks only provided their customers with difficult ‘opt-in’ processes for switching to low-fee banking options, including forcing some consumers to travel hundreds of kilometres to their nearest bank branch.” https://lnkd.in/guRGn9dC #bankfees #lowincome #newsreel

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Watch Out for Cyber Criminals Masquerading as the ATO. The ATO is warning Australian Taxpayers to be on increased alert for tax scams. Cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated with their scams. Don’t become a victim! For more information, head over to our website https://lnkd.in/gShukJFU #vlassisandco #teamvlassis #ato #cybersecurity #reportascam #accountants #adelaide

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Fresh warnings about #scams and #fraud involving fake invoices, after a data leak affecting a leading Australian smoke alarm company left apparent customer records exposed online for a number of months. 🚨 The exposed database purportedly contained over 762k documents and totalled 107 Gb, with nearly 360k being marked as invoices, dated 2021-2024. According to the ACCC, the information exposed in the open database could provide scammers with "additional tools" to help them target consumers and businesses with "payment redirection scams" using fake invoices. #accountspayable #accountsreceivable #paymentfraud #invoicefraud #invoiceprocessing #invoicemanagement #fraudprevention #scams #cfo #financialcontrol #supplierfraud #supplierrisk #embezzlement #falseinvoices

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Thanks to Mark Howarth for sharing insights on the rising threat of ransomware and the recent attack on FirstMac by the EMBARGO group. Check out the practical tips to protect your business from similar cyber threats #ransomware #cybersecurityawareness #phishnetglobal

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The ACCC is intent on minimising payment redirection scams. Despite a 28% decrease in reports to Scamwatch last year, losses to payment redirection scams rose by 3%, totaling $16.2 million. Scammers pose as legitimate businesses and alter payment details on fake invoices, making detection difficult. Industries targeted include real estate, legal, and construction; with recent reports indicating car dealerships and travel companies are also affected. Scam victims include individuals like a man who lost over $35,000 to a compromised email account scam. The National Anti-Scam Centre held an industry forum to address sectors targeted by these scams and shared Scamwatch reports with law enforcement. Australians are advised to verify payment details by calling businesses directly before making payments. If you have been subject to a scam, we may be able to assist. Contact us today. https://lnkd.in/gjEpqaDH

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Incident Response Guide by cyber.gov.au. The Australian Government defines cyber security as measures used to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of systems and information. A cyber incident is an unwanted or unexpected cyber security event, or a series of such events, that have a significant probability of compromising business operations. Share and follow Threat Intelligence Lab!

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We worked with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to create an Easy Read version of their Little Black Book of Scams. This resource covers the most common scams to watch out for, how scammers try to trick you, how to protect yourself from scams and where you can find help. We wrote an Easy Read summary of the Little Black Book of Scams, as well as individual Easy Read guides about each type of common scam.  Our studio team focussed on making the icons in the Easy Read documents consistent with the icons in the original source document. The bespoke images also needed some creative problem-solving to illustrate abstract concepts like hacking and multi-factor authentication. Our studio team is very proud of the effort they put into designing images that are clear and represent the text. Research shows that people with disability, low levels of literacy, First Nations peoples and people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities can be more vulnerable to scams. It was important to the ACCC that we collaborated with a focus group to help us make sure our Easy Read documents would be accessible to the wider community. We also provided print-ready versions of the individual abridged guides so they can be printed and distributed at events and outreach opportunities. We were pleased to assist the ACCC to get this vital information into the community, as the danger of being scammed is something that affects us all. You can read the Easy Read version of the Little Black Book of Scams on the Scamwatch website: https://bit.ly/Scam_Watch. #ACCC #EasyRead #accessibility #inclusion #scams Image description: Pages of the Easy Read version of the Little Black Book of Scams spread out on a clear background. 

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🚨 The Victorian government experienced four cyber attacks over eighteen months, during which hackers altered supplier bank details stored in a central database. 🔓 This type of attack is called invoice fraud and involves unauthorised changes to financial information with the intent to divert payments to accounts controlled by hackers. By changing the bank details of suppliers, the attackers aim to redirect payments meant for legitimate suppliers to their own accounts. ❓ What can business owners do to protect themselves against invoice fraud? ✅ Employ strong, unique passwords and change them periodically. ✅ Use multi-factor authentication (MFA) for accessing financial systems and sensitive databases. ✅ Employ an MSP to enhance cyber security by providing advanced tools, 24/7 monitoring, regular audits, employee training, and incident response services. 👉 Speak with us today [email protected] #systima #invoicefraud #msp #cybersecurity https://lnkd.in/gmwW6Qsv

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