Scammers rely on the fact that your staff are very busy. And because you are busy, you may provide them with information, such as order, invoice or credit card numbers that they can use to carry out their fraudulent activities.

Scammers target businesses in a range of ways and you and your staff need to be vigilant so you are not scammed.

Top of page

Telephone scams are also known as ‘blowing’ or telemarketing fraud. Scammers convince you that:

• you placed an order some time ago, they ‘lost’ the order number so you supply a new one
• you had taken out advertising or a directory listing (in a non-existent publication) and they were just chasing up urgent payment
• a colleague had approved the deal (using a name from your office)
• they are a representative from a government department demanding money you allegedly owe.

Top of page

Invoice fraud is a growing problem for small businesses and scammers target them by telephone, mail, email and fax, to obtain money.

Advertising and directory listings

A representative from a magazine or directory calls and asks for you by name and then falsely claims that they spoke to you several months earlier and you agreed to purchase an advertisement or a directory listing. Often you will be asked for a special code or word which is later used against you as proof that you agreed to purchase the advertising. Sometimes they will falsely claim the magazine is about to go to print and if you don’t pay immediately, you will miss the print deadline. Alternatively you may receive an invoice demanding money for an advertisement in a magazine or to re-new an entry in a business directory that you have never heard of.  Be careful of scammers who use names that sound similar to legitimate publications but which don’t actually exist.

Top of page

A business opportunity scam can come to you through a spam email, a phone call or a letter. The scammer will always offer you a way to make a lot of money quickly. These scams are similar to pyramid schemes, chain letters, computer prediction software and work from home scams. A business opportunity can be a scam if it relies on you making an upfront payment (for something that does not work or is not what you expected), recruiting other people to the scheme (pyramid schemes) or paying for a ‘system’ to make money which does not work as it is supposed to. Be wary if there is a start up cost for a business opportunity or a business only provides a post office box address and no street address.

Top of page

A scammer may contact you and under false pretences, obtain information about the type of printer or photocopier your business has. The scammer then sends printer or toner cartridges, at a premium price, which were never ordered. Because they correspond to the model in use, their supply is not questioned and the bill paid. Further invoices may then follow, even where products are not supplied.

Top of page

A fax back scam is an unsolicited fax that can offer you anything from amazing diets to fantastic deals, business directory entries, competition entries or catalogues of goods and services – all you have to do is send a fax back to a premium rate number (starting with 190). Premium rate faxes can be charged at more than $6.00 per minute. The scammers make sure your fax will take several minutes to get through, resulting in hefty, unnecessary phone bills (a single fax could cost you $20 or $30).

Top of page

A domain name must be renewed every couple of years. Domain name renewal scams can work in one of two ways. You might be sent an invoice for a domain name that is very similar to your current domain name but might for example end in net.au instead of com.au – the scammer hopes that you don’t notice the difference and just pay the invoice. Alternatively you could be sent a letter that looks like a renewal notice for your actual domain name, but is from a different company to the one you registered your domain name with.

Top of page

Scams frequently cross national boundaries so business owners need to be on the alert for suspect deals offered by overseas organisations. In one scam, people claiming to be representatives of the Nigerian Government targeted firms with the proposal of depositing money into their bank accounts. In return for allowing use of that account, the firm was supposed to receive a substantial share of the funds.

To take part in the deal, the business was required to supply blank copies of its letterhead, a stamped and signed invoice and bank account details. However, just before they received their share of the funds, business owners were asked for a ‘tax’ or cash to cover last minute expenses or bribes. The businesses lost $250,000 to more than $1 million and never received their promised share of the other money.

Top of page

A lot of information you may consider personal is actually public knowledge. Details such as address, family relationships, date of birth, and business details can be discovered through the electoral roll, telephone listings and websites. Scammers may ring around your birthday pretending to be a long lost friend, and then turn the conversation to extracting money.

Top of page

Scammers thrive on uncertainty and target poorly organised businesses.

To avoid scams:

• have clear purchasing and advertising policies and keep proper records
• don’t approve purchases over the phone – get them in writing first
• check the details of any new trader before doing business including their Australian Business Number (ABN) at www.abr.business.gov.au
• check company registration, lodgement of company documents and the banned or disqualified directors’ register at www.asic.gov.au/transactions
• check registrations of businesses and community organisations with your local Fair Trading Centre or call 13 32 20
• when considering advertising, ask for copies of previous editions and check the publication’s circulation with the Audit Bureau of Circulations www.auditbureau.org.au
• never give out or clarify information about your business unless you know what it will be used for
• carefully read all the terms and conditions of any offers as they may have hidden costs
• limit the number of people who can approve spending and train staff to identify and  deal with fraud
• seek professional help (accountant/solicitor) if significant money, time or responsibilities are involved
• you should only pay for advertising that has been if authorised in writing by your company. If an advertising invoice does not contain circulation details, the publisher business name and address, or the details of the advertisement date and charges, do not pay it until you investigate if further.

Top of page

Office of Fair Trading
www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au
Tel: 13 32 20

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
www.scamwatch.gov.au
Tel: 1300 795 995

Top of page