Messages stream in on Facebook and email: Your Squarespace account has been suspended. Your Apple account has been suspended. Click the link. Click the link. CLICK THE LINK.
The Federal Government’s Scamwatch notes that Australians lost more than $300 million to scams in 2016 — up from $229 million the year before. That’s a 31 per cent increase.
According to the Scamwatch website, the most losses were racked up through investment scams, closely followed by romance scams. A huge portion of people reporting scams (45 per cent) were Australians over the age of 55.
Cyber safety consultant Leonie Smith — dubbed “the Cyber Safety Lady” — says scammers “will go for people that are over 60 because they think those people are more vulnerable. They haven’t been on the internet as long, they’re not digital natives.”
In fact, my friend Oliver tells me an anecdote that fits this exact scenario: “My elderly dad is really interested in astronomy and downloaded astronomy software that had a Trojan attached to it.
“He then rang the fake Microsoft number that popped up on his on screen and they tried to scam him for a lot of money. He refused to pay and they kept ringing back harassing and bullying him for cash,” Oliver says, adding that he believes “there’s a huge need for community education” among retirees.
WE ARE LEAVING OUR DOORS UNLOCKED
Back with Cyber Safety Lady Leonie Smith, many of her clients “are really quite shocked” when they learn how open they’ve made themselves to online scamming…
Source: Paypal scam, St George bank text scam: Don’t be fooled
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