With rising interest rates, Australians are increasingly looking for investment opportunities to secure their financial future. This is being exploited by scammers offering fake investment opportunities through fraudulent websites.
Scamwatch sheds some light on imposter bond investment scams and provides tips for how to avoid falling victim to them.
Who is Scamwatch?
Scamwatch is run by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC). It aims to raise awareness about how to recognise and protect yourself against scams.
What are imposter bond scams?
Imposter bond scams usually impersonate real financial companies or banks and claim to offer government/Treasury bonds or fixed term deposits.
More than half of the victims of these scams were first contacted by phone, but many also found fake third-party comparison sites after searching online for investment opportunities.
“These comparison sites can appear very convincing, and people are providing their details under the impression that these are legitimate Australian sites comparing real financial services,” said ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard.
What is the impact on Australians?
Between January and June 2022 there were losses of over $20 million attributed to imposter bond scams, representing a 265 percent increase compared to the same period in 2021.
The total number of reported cases also increased significantly, with 82 reports in the first half of 2021 increasing to 228 reports in the first half of…
