Fraud Awareness Week: Consumers urged to talk about scams, share stories

Thursday, 18 November 2021

MBIE's consumer protection national manager Simon Gallagher talks to Radio Tarana's Sanjesh Narain about Fraud Awareness Week, November 14-20. (Video first published November, 2021)

Covid lockdowns have given rise to online scams in the country, says the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

Simon Gallagher, MBIE's consumer protection national manager, said more people spending time online because of Covid lockdowns had provided cyber criminals with opportunities to defraud with sophisticated scams.

Speaking to Radio Tarana this week to highlight Fraud Awareness Week, Novembver 14-20, Gallagher urged people to protect one another by talking about scams, sharing stories and reporting scams when they see them.

Simon Gallagher is consumer protection national manager for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

Online scams and fraud cost people $4.5 million in 2020/21 financial year, according to CERT NZ (Computer Emergency Response Team).

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More than one in five reports (22 per cent) responded to by CERT NZ in the year to 30 June 2021 were scams and frauds, with the majority of these fraudulent online sales, but also included relationship fraud.

Gallagher said sophisticated scams were becoming harder to spot, leaving consumers more vulnerable than ever.

'Lockdowns has provided cyber criminals with an opportunity to groom, defraud and exploit with more sophisticated scams, which are becoming harder to spot.

'By working together and reporting scams, people can help others to avoid being scammed.'

Gallagher said one of the best tools to combat them was people reporting scams when they happened to the financial provider, agency, or business, and to the police.

'While it is natural to feel some hurt or shame in falling prey to online scammers, it's important to remember that these are sophisticated systems designed to build your trust.'

CERT NZ director Rob Pope said New Zealanders could avoid scams by being wary of 'too good to be true' deals, and not giving personal information to unknown sources.

'Keeping your personal information private is one of the key things people can do to stay safe from online scams,' Pope said.

'Keeping your personal accounts locked down with long, strong passwords and two-factor authentication is another good way people can keep their data away from cyber criminals.'

CERT NZ has also noticed an increase in scam calls from people offering technical help in 2021.

'If you're ever in doubt about the authenticity of a phone call offering support for your laptop or mobile device, it's best to hang up and contact the organisation directly via the information on their website,' Pope said.

Scams can be reported to Netsafe, CERT NZ, NZ Police, the Department of Internal Affairs and individual telecommunication agencies.

Visit the Fraud Awareness Week 2021 page to find out the steps to take and who to reach for help.