Hume LAC Detective Inspector Chad Gillies says scammers are targeting residents in the Southern Highlands, including Goulburn, via email and mobile.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Hume LAC have released regular warnings on their Facebook page since February, detailing how scams work and the different forms it takes.
“We encourage not to respond blindly. Call the ‘so-called’ department yourself and verify information if you have doubts,” Inspector Gillies said.
He said scammers were using the Australian Taxation Office, Telstra, Australian Federal Police and other trusted organisations to gain details, with vulnerable people in the community, including the elderly and those who are less tech savvy, facing a higher risk of becoming victims.
“If you stick to the rules of never giving out personal information unless you’ve made a call yourself, the chances of becoming a victim is reduced,” he said.
“If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
The Hume LAC have reported a mutation of scams across the board.
Offenders often target areas over a specific time and soon jump to another suburb if residents have not responded to the call outs, or have alerted the police.
Inspector Gillies says around 40 per cent of fraud in the Goulburn Mulwaree region is due to failure to pay, and the remaining 60 per cent is divided into scams, stolen credit cards, deception offences and counterfeit currency.
Police encourage residents to report scams to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission via Scam Watch or to call 1300 795 995.