Chinese embassy in Australia reminds Chinese citizens to beware of investment scams

　　China News Service, June 15. According to the WeChat official account of the Chinese Embassy in Australia, the Australian Competition and Consumer Association (ACCC) recently issued a reminder that from January 1 to May 1, Australian citizens lost 205 million due to fraud. Australian dollar, up 166% from the same period last year.

According to the latest figures from Scamwatch, only about 13 per cent of victims report losses to it, and the actual damage could be closer to $1 billion.

Investment scams were the biggest source of losses, with $158 million in losses, a 314% increase year-on-year, of which $113 million was in cryptocurrency investments.

People aged 55 to 64 were the hardest hit, losing $32 million over the period, with more than 80 per cent of that being investment scams.

　　Delia Rickard, vice-president of the Australian Competition and Consumers Association (ACCC), said: “We should be very wary of anyone asking to invest or transfer money using cryptocurrencies, especially if the person has only met online. Many consumers are unfamiliar with the intricacies of cryptocurrencies. sex, which could make them more gullible."

　　Figures from Scamwatch show that contact details for many scams in Australia are changing, with text message scams increasing by 54 per cent between January 1 and May 1 this year, overtaking phone calls as the most common method of contact.

Also, there has been an increase this year in scams impersonating bonds, often impersonating real financial companies or banks, claiming to offer government/treasury bonds or term deposits, and Australians have reportedly lost A$10.9 million as a result.

Over the same period, phone scams nearly halved, suggesting the telecom industry's Reducing Scams Call Code 2020 is having an impact, with telecom operators blocking more than 549 million scam calls since the policy was introduced, Limiting opportunities for criminals to defraud Australians.

　　The Chinese embassy in Australia reminds overseas Chinese to pay attention to the changes in Australian fraudulent methods, strengthen prevention, and beware of being deceived.