Scammers are always about, and always looking for new ways to practice deception. No article we can write can take the place of your own diligence. In any conversation, consider:
- Do I really know who I am speaking to? Can I verify that?
- Does what they are saying actually make sense?
- Is this typical of the organization I think I’m dealing with?
- Are there any steps I can take to protect myself before I hand over personal information?
Legitimate callers will understand if you wish to hang up and phone them back using a number you’ve looked up yourself. There is no better use of your time than this – you can’t get back information once you’ve disclosed it to a scammer.
Keep yourself informed: subscribe to Scamwatch Radar and receive scam alerts to your inbox.
Things We Won’t Do
- We won’t use a recorded message to tell you we’re disconnecting your services.
- We won’t require you to provide us payment in gift cards.
- We won’t direct you to use a website that isn’t swoopbroadband.com.au.
- We won’t tell you that you can’t hang up and call us back to confirm you’re really speaking to us. If you receive any odd calls claiming to be from us, please hang up and call us back to check. Only use our public contact number to call us: 1300 66 55 75.
- We won’t use NBN to contact you regarding issues with your account or with your VoIP phone service.
Clues To Look Out For
- Scammers will usually try to impersonate a well-known organization, business or government department.
- They may claim there’s a situation that will have legal ramifications for you.
- They may call claiming there’s an issue with a service you receive, or they may seek financial details to process a “refund” or other payment.
- They may claim there’s a problem with your computer, and try to get access to it.
- They may try to make you feel the situation is urgent to pressure you into a quick reaction before you have a chance to think.
Examples of Common Phone Scams
New scams arise all the time, and old ones are modified to keep them fresh, so this shouldn’t be considered an exhaustive list. This list is only some of the types of scam calls that are reported in Australia.
NBN Calling
If you are a Swoop Broadband customer, then we are your point of contact for all NBN and phone issues. NBN will never call you directly to threaten you with disconnection. NBN will not call you about issues with your VoIP phone.
Disconnection Threats
Automated dialers that tell you your service will be cut off unless you press 1 are a scam call. We will never use an automatic dialer or voice recording to contact you about important account information.
ATO Threats
The ATO will not call you and demand you settle a debt by gift card, such as iTunes cards or Google Play cards. Legitimate companies and real government departments and agencies never accept gift cards as payment.
Survey Scams
Scammers have been calling and asking about your financial institution as part of a so-called survey. They ask for your BSB, which tells them the name and branch of your bank. Weeks later they call back and use their knowledge of your bank to try to convince you they are genuinely calling from your financial institution. Don’t ever give out any part of your bank details to survey takers.
REPORT SCAMS
Report scams to the ACCC’s Scamwatch: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam
Report scams to us: [email protected] or call us on 1300 66 55 75
If you have been scammed, take immediate action. The Scamwatch site has a list of actions you can take: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/get-help/where-to-get-help
