The word scam can seem intimidating, but it’s important that we keep abreast of new scams targeting people in our community. This ABC News article highlights an emerging text message scam that plays on people’s security fears.
These ‘Flubot’ scams send a link by text message. While the details in these messages are constantly evolving, the advice from us at Leep, shared by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), is always the same: never click on a link sent to you via a text message.
Scammers pretend to be from credible sources: the government, your bank or a telecommunications company. Never click the link, no matter who the sender claims to be. If you are concerned, call the appropriate number and ask if they attempted to contact you via text message.
NSW Crime Stoppers recently launched the ‘Just Hang Up’ campaign, which encourages mobile phone users to protect themselves against scammers:
- A legitimate institution will never ask personal questions on an unsolicited call, text message or email.
- If you are wary of a call, just hang up.
- If you’ve received a scam text, you can report it to Scamwatch.
- If you have lost information to a scammer, you can contact IDCARE on 1800 595 160.
If you are over 65 and would like one-on-one assistance with staying safe online, Leep’s trained volunteer Tech Mates are available to help. We welcome complete beginners.
If you are in the Nepean area and are registered with MyAgedCare, we may be able to provide you with a free iPad/tablet and internet connection.
Call us on 1300 163 106 for more information.