The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is warning Australians to be vigilant for money recovery scams, which promise to return funds lost to scams following an initial payment.
In 2022 alone, the ACCC’s Scamwatch has received 66 reports of money recovery scams, marking a 725 per cent increase on the same period in 2021.
The way the scam works is deceptively simple: scammers target previous victims, contacting them randomly and posing as a trusted organisation such as a law firm, fraud taskforce or a government agency.
They then request that the victim make an upfront payment and provide identity documents in return for the “trusted” organisation refunding money originally taken by the scammer.
In many instances the scammer will provide official-looking websites and fake testimonials to increase trust with the victim, and may request remote access to computers or smart phones.
This year alone Australians have lost over $270,000 to money recovery scams – an increase of 301 per cent on the same period in 2021.
ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said money recovery scams are “particularly nasty” as they target people who have already fallen victim to a scam.
“If you get contacted out…
