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Australia’s treasurer has applauded the early progress made by a new agency in reducing losses to scams, as a key consultation on scam reimbursement comes to an end.
Speaking to the Australian parliament in Canberra this week, treasurer Jim Chalmers revealed that the National Anti-Scam Centre is already showing promise in reducing losses to scams.
In the six months since the centre was launched, Chalmers said that losses to scams have fallen 29 percent compared with the same period in 2022.
This early impact is even more impressive considering that 2022 was a record-breaking year for scam losses in Australia.
In 2022, as covered by Vixio, Australia’s total losses to scams hit $3.1bn — an increase of 80 percent over the previous year.
“It's still a big problem,” said Chalmers, responding to a question from Liberal MP Russell Broadbent, “but the crackdown on scams is already showing some signs of success.
“This is a very big focus of the government, and there has been some absolutely terrific work by the assistant treasurer,” he added.
A new scam-fighting force
The National Anti-Scam Centre is an agency that sits within the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
With a mandate to build out its information sharing capabilities over the next three years, the centre brings together experts from government agencies and the private sector to tackle scams.
It builds on the work of the ACCC’s Scamwatch service, which allows consumers to report scams, and coordinates public-private action to identify and disrupt scams.
The centre is supported and informed by an Advisory Board headed by ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe, who appoints the board’s 12 members.
Up to six members are drawn from specific industries affected by scams, including banking and payments, while the remaining six are subject to change.
Current members include: Anna Bligh, CEO of the Australian Banking Association (ABA); Andy White, CEO of the Australian Payments Network; and Simon Callaghan, CEO of Blockchain Australia.
A well-funded campaign
In his response to Broadbent, Chalmers said the Labor government under Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has an “ambitious agenda” on fighting scams.
With the issue entrusted to assistant treasurer Stephen Jones, Chalmers said the Treasury has budgeted $86.5m to combat scams and online fraud during 2023-24.
Of the total, $58m is earmarked for the National Anti-Scam Centre and $17.6m is earmarked for the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), which has been tasked with “busting” fake investment websites.
A further $10m will go towards the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to establish an SMS sender ID registry to identify and prevent scam texts.
Chalmers added that the extra funding is allowing Australian regulators to put up a coordinated fight against scammers.
As of last week, for example, ASIC has taken down more than 4,200 scam websites, and has identified hundreds more that will be targeted for closure.
All in all, so far in 2024, the treasurer said losses to scams are running 40 percent lower than during the same period in 2023.
Scam reimbursement question remains unanswered
The next big issue for the Treasury to solve in relation to scams is the question of reimbursement for scam losses.
Last month, a consultation on a new mandatory industry code for tackling scams closed, with the government proposing that banks, telcos and digital platforms come under specific regulation to identify and tackle scams.
If the proposals are adopted, companies that are found to be in breach of the industry code would be required to compensate customers who have lost money to scams.
Whether Australian firms would support moves towards a mandatory reimbursement scheme for scams losses remains to be seen, but there is support for more coordination within the payments industry to standardise anti-scam measures.
In November last year, for example, Australian banks announced the launch of the Scam-Safe Accord, which includes a $100m investment in a new confirmation of payee system to be rolled out across all banks.
The industry code would go one step further than voluntary initiatives such as the accord, by introducing an “overarching regime” within primary legislation, such as the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.
