Scam season warning”¦.
Fair Trading Commissioner Rod Stowe is warning all consumers to be extra wary in the coming weeks of cold callers, following a marked increase in reports of telephone scamming.
Five scamming operations have been reported by scam-savvy consumers in the past week. These
include:
”¢ A caller claiming to be from a company called Quantum Support that already had a Harrington man’s IPS address and bank details. The caller identified herself as Alison Watson and she
demanded payment of $199. The sum of $118 had already been taken from the man’s bank account. The money appeared to have been transferred to Houston, Texas.
Ӣ Callers with Indian or Filipino accents claiming to be from the fictitious NSW Bank Reclaim Department of Federal Government, offering a Tamban man and a Harrington man each a$5,248 reimbursement as a result of their banks overcharging them. Both men were told they would have to pay a $199 fee to receive their refunds.
Ӣ A caller with a Filipino accent identifying himself as Austin Sebastian claiming to be from a company called Ebson. He contacted a Lakewood woman and attempted to extract payment from her after claiming her computer server had sent him a message saying there was a fault in
her Windows program.
Ӣ A caller identifying himself as Amit from the Accident Management Bureau in Queensland, contacting a Woolgoolga woman and inquiring whether any of her family members had recently been involved in a car accident. When she replied yes, the caller told her she would
receive between $7,000 and $15,000 because she was not at fault and then attempted to get personal details off her including her car registration number.
Ӣ A caller with an Irish accent identifying himself as Charles Pound and claiming to be from a company called Asset Cap Management contacting a Taree man with an investment
opportunity. The caller claimed he was selling shares in a company called International Medical Ventures and could guarantee a greater than 100 % return on investments between $5,000 and $25,000.
“Fortunately in all these recent cases, the consumer recognised the scam for what is was and contacted Fair Trading,” Mr Stowe said.
“However, it is impossible to say how many others may have been ripped off by these cold callers as very often people are too embarrassed to report the matter once they realise they have been scammed. “Some of these callers can sound very convincing, so it is important to remember that government agencies do not cold call and offer refunds or cash payments or ask for bank account or card details.”
Get scam smart ”“ go to www.scamwatch.gov.au or www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au for tips and to download the free Scam Buster app in iPhone or Android version
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