Australia’s competition watchdog has partnered with the corporate regulator to trial automated takedowns of websites hosting phishing and other scams.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb revealed the trial at the Law Council of Australia’s 2022 consumer rights forum on Tuesday.
The trial, which began in late June, is focused on removing websites reported to the ACCC’s Scamwatch and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
The ACCC is using a countermeasures service offered by UK-based Netcraft, which has provided the same service to the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre for four years.
The internet services company also claims to perform takedowns for four of the ten most phished companies.
Cass-Gottlieb said “more than 300 malicious websites targeting Australians” have been submitted to Netcraft in the last three weeks, resulting in dozens of takedowns.
Many of these websites were “phishing sites impersonating Australian businesses and government authorities”, she said.
Other websites related to “puppy scams, shoe scams, cryptocurrency investment scams and tech support scams”.
“Direct protection of consumers through disrupting scam websites at their source is a powerful addition to arming consumers with knowledge about scams,” Cass-Gottlieb said.
“I am very pleased the ACCC is conducting this work.”
Cass-Gottlieb acknowledged the private sector’s work…
