According to the most recent data from Scamwatch, Australians have continued to fall for investment and cryptocurrency-related scams, handing out 242.5 million Australian dollars to con artists so far in 2022.
The majority of money lost to scams of any kind between January and July of this year were investment scams, which can include everything from traditional Ponzi schemes to cryptocurrency fraud.
The amount is already 36% higher than the total 2021 numbers, which showed that Australians lost 178.2 million AUD as a result of investment scams during the year.
It’s a threat that has prompted consumer advocates to push for banks to shoulder more responsibility for reimbursing scams to “drive greater investment in stopping
fraud”
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported on September 8 that advocacy organizations are pressing for changes that would require banks to verify that the recipient’s name matches the account name when money is moved online.
The most important reform is moving the burden of responsibility for fraud losses from individual consumers to institutions. Gerard Brody, CEO of Consumer Action Law Center, said” They [banks] ask you for the account name, but they don’t actually check.”
Banks, meanwhile, want more clients to
adopt the PayID technology, which is optional. This permits clients to view the name connected to an account number and BSB.
Brody claimed that the optional system was obvious. making consumers solely accountable for avoiding scams is ineffective.
Authorities in Australia appeared to have
increased scrutiny of the cryptocurrency industry a spike in cryptocurrency fraud, hacking, and the broader market decline
The month also saw the new Australian
Labour government announce its stance on crypto regulation, while crypto exchange
Binance Australia also announced in August they were tightening the onboarding processes for new users to protect people flagged as most vulnerable to financial crypto crime.
