No One’s Just A Number

Stop – Check – Protect

Scam Awareness Week 2026

While reading the newspaper recently, I came across an advertisement for a Scam Education webinar, serving as a timely reminder that Scam Awareness Week runs from 24–28 August 2026.

The theme this year is No One’s Just a Number – it is a powerful reminder that behind every reported fraud is a real person who has suffered a loss of trust, time, or financial security.  Scams target people from all walks of life, without boundaries.

Between January and June 2026 alone, the National Anti-Scam Centre received 22,056 reports from Victoria, representing over $27.4 million* in total losses.  The top three scams were:

• Investment Scams: $13,828,725
• Relationship Scams: $3,417,740
• Phishing Scams: $3,048,230

The most frequent points of contact were email (7,835 reports), phone calls (5,392 reports) and online channels (4,516 reports).

Scammers continually evolve their tactics to gain your trust.  Stay vigilant for these warning signs:

• Unexpected Contact: Unsolicited calls, texts, emails, social media messages, or in-person visits (such as door-knockers asking for survey details, donations, or upfront payment).
• High Pressure or Threats: Demands to pay immediately, transfer funds to a “safe account,” or act fast to avoid consequences like exposed personal images or lost investment returns.
• Requests for Access: Calls or messages asking to remotely access your computer, download software, click social media links, or share personal banking details and passwords.
• Digital Misdirection: Subtle spelling errors in email domain names (e.g., using .co instead of .com), mismatched facial movements in deepfake videos, unusual pauses, or varying voice pitches.

Scamwatch – run by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) alongside the National Anti-Scam Centre – recommends three essential actions:

1. STOP: Do not share money or personal details if you feel uncertain.  Scammers frequently impersonate trusted businesses, police, or government agencies.
2. CHECK: Ask yourself if the contact could be fake.  Never click links in unexpected messages.  Independently look up official contact numbers to verify requests.  If in doubt, hang up or delete the message.
3. PROTECT: Act immediately if something feels wrong.  Contact your financial institution right away to stop pending transactions and report the incident to Scamwatch.  Every report helps remove scam websites, ads, and contact channels to safeguard the wider community.

To report a scam, or for more updates, resources, visit the official Scamwatch website.

If you have been impacted by a scam, remember that you are not alone.  IDCARE is a free, non-profit support service available to help individuals and small businesses recover from identity theft and fraud.

To help build your confidence, consider attending one of these upcoming educational sessions:

• In-Person Session: Hosted by Services Australia at Ashburton Library (154 High Street, Ashburton) on Wednesday, 26 August at 11.00 am. Bookings can be made via Boroondara Council Events.
• Online Session: NAB – National Australia Bank – is hosting an online Scam Education Conversation on Tuesday, 25 August at 12.00 noon. Register online through NAB.

By sharing our stories and having conversations with friends and families about scams, we can help others recognise the warning signs and help to ensure that no one stands alone in the fight against scammers.

By Kate Baines 

Source: Scamwatch

*Statistics from Scamwatch Resources