Scammers have been using seemingly harmless social media games as a clever trick to hack Australian bank accounts.New South Wales Police made a post on Thursday alerting people to the risks of participating in ‘just for fun’ or ‘getting to know you better’ quizzes on Facebook.The posts can include questions like ‘First pet’s name?’ and ‘Mum’s name before she was married?’ which are common questions used to verify an account when changing private information like passwords and linked phone numbers.NSW Police sent the warning through their Facebook account after working with the state’s cyber team.
‘Be aware that this information can be used by scammers to hack into your accounts and take over your social media profiles,’ the post read.’Limit the amount of private information you share on social media, and don’t copy and paste or re-post this type of content.’ Questions that scammers are asking to attempt to trick unsuspecting commenters include the model of your first car, the street you grew up on and your favourite sports team.The criminals can then use the information to hack into your accounts, using the responses to hack the password recovery system.Two-factor authentication can prevent such scams, with people linking accounts to either a third-party authenticator app or their phone number.
The post comes after an urgent warning was issued in February after scammers targeted at least 200 Australians while pretending to be the Australian Taxation Office.The Government’s Scamwatch service raised the alarm to remind Australians the ATO will never threaten people with arrest.’Yesterday we received almost 200 reports of recorded or live cold-calls claiming an issue with the victim’s tax return or TFN’, Scamwatch said.’The ATO will never threaten you with immediate arrest or send unsolicited pre-recorded messages to your phone.’ Scamwatch said these scams are common and are used to frighten vulnerable people such, including threatening to take their lives.
‘The scammer may call you and pressure you into paying immediately, threaten you with arrest, or say they will send the police to your house if you refuse.’ Fraudsters are also known to ask for payments of outstanding tax debts while pretending to be from trusted organisations such as Australia Post, ATO and banks.If the scam is sent by email, it commonly includes an attachment or link to a fake website to download or open a file that could infect computer malware.Scamwatch is encouraging Australians to remain vigilant, and look for warning signs when they receive an ‘out of the blue call’ from alleged government officials.- Send you an email or text message asking you to send us your information by email or text message.- Send you an email or text message with a link to log into online services.- Send a pre-recorded message saying the police are coming to arrest you or demanding urgent payment of money.
– Ask for payment by bank transfers to: – A bank that is not the Reserve Bank of Australia – Overseas wire transfers – iTunes or Google Play cards – Cardless cash transfers – Cryptocurrency like Bitcoin Source: ATO .
