Scams, whose fault?

Anne* was looking for a genuine romantic connection when she stumbled across Lucio's profile on the dating platform Tinder.

After days of exchanging hundreds of messages back and forth about their interests and hobbies, the first mention of cryptocurrency came into the picture.

A mistake the 26-year-old Melbourne woman says was of her own doing, but she didn't know it at the time.

Within a week, Lucio convinced her to start trading cryptocurrency as he was aware it was an area she showed interest in.

One month later, she'd been scammed out of $46,100.

Now, Anne believes Lucio was a persona created by a criminal syndicate and his messages were straight out of a script expertly designed to manipulate.

This is the anatomy of a scam known as "pig butchering" that is being used to prey on vulnerable Australians.

Unbelievable. This woman lied to ANZ when questioned about the transfers she was making and the reason for wanting a loan. But ANZ should cover her scammed losses because they didn't protect her.

No sympathy.

Its a societal problem.
people refuse to be responsible for their own actions.
You cannot legislate against stupidity.
And it seems that males in the 65 and over bracket are more likely to fall for scams.
Mick

Com bank sent me a message asking for me to check a credit card transaction... payment to Lagos, Nigeria.

Had a look had another two all pending, filed dispute, card cancelled total refunded ($19 fee for each refund) no idea how they got my details.

IFocus said:

($19 fee for each refund)

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that's the bit I don't understand

mullokintyre said:

Its a societal problem.
people refuse to be responsible for their own actions.
You cannot legislate against stupidity.
And it seems that males in the 65 and over bracket are more likely to fall for scams.
Mick
View attachment 188863

Click to expand...

@mullokintyre Not this tight arse.

IFocus said:

Com bank sent me a message asking for me to check a credit card transaction... payment to Lagos, Nigeria.

Had a look had another two all pending, filed dispute, card cancelled total refunded ($19 fee for each refund) no idea how they got my details.

Click to expand...

@IFocus What the......

Dona Ferentes said:

that's the bit I don't understand

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Makes two of us but $19 for each transaction refund note the bank never actually parted with the money as payment was held as pending my response.

Just the Com bank fees stuff remember the US banks coming to Australia to see how the banks here were so profitable, If I remember correctly most fees were illegal in the US.

Went though all my transactions over the previous days and for the life of me cannot see how they got my details, wondering if my card got skimmed some how?

IFocus said:

Makes two of us but $19 for each transaction refund note the bank never actually parted with the money as payment was held as pending my response.

Just the Com bank fees stuff remember the US banks coming to Australia to see how the banks here were so profitable, If I remember correctly most fees were illegal in the US.

Went though all my transactions over the previous days and for the life of me cannot see how they got my details, wondering if my card got skimmed some how?

Click to expand...

@IFocus Only logical to think that your card was skimmed.
When i was injured 4.5 years ago, I was waiting at the pharmacy at Midland Hospital and had mine skimmed there.
Fortunately, the Bank was quick off the mark and we lost nothing, also no fees or such like.
At that stage our bank was not one of the big Four.

IFocus said:

Makes two of us but $19 for each transaction refund note the bank never actually parted with the money as payment was held as pending my response.

Just the Com bank fees stuff remember the US banks coming to Australia to see how the banks here were so profitable, If I remember correctly most fees were illegal in the US.

Went though all my transactions over the previous days and for the life of me cannot see how they got my details, wondering if my card got skimmed some how?

Click to expand...

I had a transaction on a debit card which wasn't made by me. I had only used the card once for an on-line purchase (Amazon around three months before the unauthorised transaction). I blocked the card and when I had a chat to the fraud area of the bank, I was told it could be from any source; compromised EFTPOS terminal, Amazon hack (despite me removing the payment method, Amazon still retains the information. And they never announce those hacks nor does Google Store). It's simply a fact of digital life now, sadly.

The suggestion I was provided by the bank was to monitor accounts on a regular basis. I have bank apps on my phone to do that although I don't use the apps to do banking, transfer or any other transactions. Most of my bills are via direct debit anyway and I only have need for debit cards for general stuff like groceries. And I generally limit the level of funds on the cards at any one time.

Banks are getting twitchy and on the odd occasion I have received a text advising a transaction had been made and to respond with either 1 it was me or 2 it wasn't me. I phoned using the number on the reverse of the debit card rather than text back and the transaction was authorised. And as I have posted previously, I have had an account blocked when I made a valid transaction but the systems considered it suspicious.

Despite views to the contrary, financial institutions do spend a lot of resources on attempting to preventing scams and the like. However, nothing is perfect and never will be. As consumers we need to up our game to protect ourselves but that takes continual effort. Some will but a lot wont and then try to shift the blame to the banks. It's been that way in the past and I don't see that changing any time soon if ever.

Just remembered it's December. Holiday season and lots of on-line buying. Expect an increase in texts or emails asking to confirm your shipping details, postage wasn't sufficient or cannot confirm your address.

Best way I think to protect yourself is to assume all contacts, even if they look legit, are attempts at scamming you. I've had five such emails this morning. And three texts. They are part of our life now.

Bellcose said:

Just remembered it's December. Holiday season and lots of on-line buying. Expect an increase in texts or emails asking to confirm your shipping details, postage wasn't sufficient or cannot confirm your address.

Best way I think to protect yourself is to assume all contacts, even if they look legit, are attempts at scamming you. I've had five such emails this morning. And three texts. They are part of our life now.

Click to expand...

Yep, just deleted 3 more myself

Never used to get them when we did business face to face, no card scams either when we paid in cash.

A few rubber cheques around though

Numbers from the Australian Bureau of Statistics regarding fraud, etc.

Another very clever on line employment scam. Well worth checking out if only to warn off any friends who are looking for a job and are tempted to apply.

Man loses $25k after falling for fraudulent job scheme​

By James Gutierrez
23 December 2024

0
An IT expert's dream retirement was shattered after he was scammed out of $25,000. Image Source: Unsplash
In a world where technology has made our lives more convenient, it has also opened the door to increasingly sophisticated scams.

For Martin Carroll, a 64-year-old IT contractor from Queensland, the promise of a simple side hustle turned into a financial nightmare, costing him $25,000 just two years before his planned retirement. His story serves as a cautionary tale for all Australians, especially those nearing retirement, who may be looking for ways to supplement their income.

Like many in the tech industry, Mr Carroll has faced challenges finding stable work in recent years, a situation exacerbated by what some are calling the ‘tech wreck’. With his savings dwindling and the holiday season approaching—a notoriously tough time for job seekers—he was eager to find a way to make ends meet.

When a seemingly legitimate job opportunity appeared on his social media feed, it felt like a lifeline.

The job seemed straightforward: fill online shopping baskets for an e-commerce store and earn $300 to $400 per week. The explanation was plausible enough.

The company claimed it was a marketing strategy to make their website appear more popular to real customers. It wasn’t a multi-level marketing scheme, nor did it require him to sell products to friends and family. It seemed like an easy, low-effort way to earn some extra cash.

But as the saying goes, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Initially sceptical, Mr Carroll hesitated. The idea of paying money upfront to make money didn’t sit well with him. However, he was added to a WhatsApp group filled with other ’employees’ who appeared to be thriving in the program. Their success stories and encouragement eventually convinced him to give it a try. In hindsight, he believes these individuals were part of the scam, designed to lure unsuspecting victims deeper into the trap.

The e-commerce company, called Ruri, appeared legitimate at first glance. It had a professional-looking website, a live chat support system, and a structured employee program. Mr Carroll was instructed to complete 30 ‘cycles’ of adding items to his shopping basket. He had to pay for these items upfront but was promised reimbursement along with a generous commission.


This is the website for Ruri.

I could say you're the fool but combine loneliness and cognitive decline, people are ripe to be pig butchered. Not so many years ago I was dismissive of many who had fallen for these romance scams, and while I still have that view to some extent, I think it is more complicated than I first thought. In a case mentioned in this article, the bank being intrusive about why a customer was withdrawing funds, saved him $1m. We certainly don't like being asked why we withdraw funds but I guess the other side of the coin is it is rescuing a person from themselves.