Keep your money safe from hackers, viruses and fraud

Scammers impersonate various banks, superannuation funds, major credit card companies and fraud departments via email, phone or SMS claiming you have fraud on your account, or a hacker on your computer.

You may receive a call, email or SMS suggesting you need to act quickly to secure your account, reverse a transaction or catch a hacker.

To avoid this scam:

• Never give personal information or remote access to your devices to someone who contacts you. If you think the request might be genuine, always contact the organisation directly on a number you've independently sourced and verified. Never click the links!

Scammers impersonate legitimate tech companies like Microsoft, Apple or antivirus providers, often under the guise of fixing a non-existent problem.

You may see fake pop-up when browsing the internet saying there is an error or security risk on your device. It's a paid advert trying to lure victims to call the "help line" where they'll pressure you to grant them remote access to your computer.

From there they can steal your data and possibly access your bank accounts if you've saved your login details passwords to browser. You'll be asked to pay for the fake services or software they claim to have installed - often by unusual payment methods.

To avoid this scam:

• Never respond to unsolicited contact or pop-ups. If you believe you’re dealing with a genuine service provider who you have an existing relationship with, contact them by phone using a number you have independently sourced and verified.

Scammers use phishing techniques to impersonate banks, government impersonation, tech support, telcos or other well known companies, hoping you'll give them remote access to your devices. This gives them control your device so they can manipulate what you see, steal your data, install malware and access your bank accounts (if you've saved your login details to browser).

To steal your money, they'll say there's a fraud or a hacker, asking you to quickly read a code sent to your phone to stop it. In reality, the code is our Secure SMS code or VIP Security - required to authorise the payments from your account!

To avoid this scam:

• Never provide remote access to your devices.
• Never give passwords or Secure SMS codes to another person.

If you believe you’re dealing with a genuine service provider who you have an existing relationship with, contact them by phone using a number you have independently sourced and verified.

You may receive an email from someone claiming to have hacked your computers or webcams, demanding payment to prevent release of compromising images and videos of you.

They sometimes include personal details such as birth dates and addresses or even passwords to give a sense of legitimacy. These personal details are most likely from previous public data breaches.

To avoid this scam:

• Ignore the email - don't respond! If they include a password, change it wherever it was used. Have I Been Pwned? is a useful website to track whether you've been caught up in any known data breaches.

Scammers impersonate various government agencies including MyGov, Centrelink, the ATO and law enforcement.

You may receive a call or text suggesting you need to act quickly to secure your account, catch a hacker, or pay an overdue tax bill or fine to avoid immediate arrest. They often build trust, create fear and a sense of urgency, hoping to catch you off guard.

To avoid this scam:

• Never give personal information or remote access to your devices to someone who contacts you. If you think the request might be genuine, always contact the organisation directly on a number you've independently sourced and verified. Never click the links!