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Scams
- What to do if you've been scammed
- Common scams and how to avoid them
Common scams and how to avoid them
There are many different scams but they will generally fall into a few main categories.
The information on this page can help you identify if you have or are being scammed as well as give you some pointers for what to do if you are the victim of a scam.
Tips for avoiding and detecting scams
Each day new scams are being developed. They are becoming more sophisticated and harder to detect but some basic information can help you know what to look out for and figure out if you’re dealing with a scam.
Signs you’re being scammed
- Things seem too good to be true. If you are promised easy and cheap access to high-paying jobs, cheap apartments, discounts or luxury goods, you might be being scammed.
- You’re not given time to make decisions. Scammers will pressure you to act quickly and won’t give you time to think about your decisions. They rely on you panicking or being frightened so that you follow their instructions.
- Things don’t seem quite right. Government officials or police officers don’t contact you asking for money and official services are never paid for with cryptocurrency. If something doesn’t seem official or correct, you should always verify that the information you have is correct.
- You’re told to pay using strange methods. Scammers will often try to get their victims to pay for things by buying gift cards or iTunes cards. This is a sign that you are being scammed. The University and other legitimate businesses don’t request that you pay this way. It is also unlikely that businesses in Australia will request that you pay them using cryptocurrency.
- Things don’t seem secure. Remember, your bank will never ask you to confirm your account details, password, security code or other personal information through email, text message or phone call. The University won’t ask for your password. Your internet supplier does not need your birth certificate. If you’re asked for these sorts of details, make sure you’re keeping your data secure.
University fee scams
Scammers might promise you discounts for your University fees, telling you that by using their service you won’t have to pay as much money.
The only place where you can pay your fees is Sydney Student.
Do not pay or provide your bank details to anybody for them to pay your fees on your behalf, even if they promise a discount.
Rental scams
Rental scams involve somebody posing as a landlord, real estate agent or property manager for a property.
The scammer will promise you a cheap, high-quality property and try to get you to pay them rent or bond. However in reality they are not responsible for the property and will instead steal your money.
How can tell if a property is genuine? How do I know if I’m dealing with a scammer?
There is no single way of knowing if a real estate scam is happening but there are a few things to look out for.
- You can’t inspect the property. Real estate scammers will make excuses for why they can’t let you see the property before you pay. The scammer might say that they are out of the country or that they don’t have access to the property because tenants currently live there. You should always inspect a property before renting it. This will help you decide if the property is a good fit for you, but it can also help detect a scam.
- You’ve found the property on an unknown or untrustworthy site. The best way to avoid these sorts of scams is to deal with a professional real estate agent and to use services such as domain.com.au and realestate.com.au to find properties. You should not trust properties listed through gumtree.com.au or other similar community sites.
- You’re asked to provide physical copies of your passport, visa or immigration documents. Real estate agencies and legitimate property managers will never need these. Providing them is dangerous.
- The price is very low and the property is in a great location. If the price of a rental property seems too good to be true, it probably is. You can use the Rent Tracker Postcode Tool to look at rental price ranges for a given postcode, which might help you tell if you’re being scammed.
The NSW Government has information about your legal rights when signing a lease. You will be expected to pay bond (four weeks of rent at most) and a month or so of rent in advance.
Money transfer scams
You might be contacted by scammers who explain that you have unexpectedly won something such as a large amount of money, a holiday, an inheritance or some other winnings. The scammer will request that you simply transfer them a small fee or pay some tax to access the funds or prize. You may be provided with convincing and official-looking documentation as evidence of you having won.
If you have actually won a prize you will not have to pay to access it, and paying tax is not done through direct bank transfers to individuals. The scammers will simply steal the money you pay for themselves. The provided documentation is false and has been created just to trick you.
This scam will lead to you losing money or even participating in illegal activities such as money laundering. Do not send funds to access prizes or money, and immediately stop contact with anybody you suspect of trying to target you for this sort of scam.
Money muling
You might be approached by somebody offering you a large amount of money, or a high-paying job, just to transfer some money into your bank account and then transfer it out again. By doing this you may be inadvertently involved in money laundering, which is an illegal offence that could see you arrested and charged by the police.
If you think you've fallen victim to money muling, you should immediately contact the police on 131 444. You should also report the report it to Cyber.gov.au.
Jobs and employment scams
Scammers can pose as employers or recruiters and target people looking for work. You might be offered a job that seems too good to be true, with guaranteed high pay, low hours or great benefits. As part of the “job application” you could be asked to pay an upfront fee or to provide your personal details and documents to start work. In reality, these scammers are just trying to take your money or steal your identity.
Our Careers Centre can offer advice about finding a job while you’re a student. This can help you avoid scams by supporting you as you find a job.
What are the signs of a job scam?
- You’ve been asked to pay a fee. You should never have to pay an employer to begin working, and companies legitimately looking for employees will not ask for money or cryptocurrency. Do not send money to somebody promising you a job.
- You’ve been contacted about the job without searching for it. Unsolicited job offers, especially over text message, WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram, might be real but you should be suspicious of them. Employers generally advertise jobs through seek.com.au, indeed.com.au or other well-known recruiting websites. Jobs on these sites could still be related to scams but it is much less likely.
- You don't have to interview for the job. If you have been offered what looks like a great job and don’t even have to go to an interview, you might be dealing with a scammer. Be careful and verify that the company and job are genuine.
- The pay is too good. Watch out for jobs that pay very well but sound very easy, or ones that promise you high wages without many hours of work. These are just being used to trick you.
- You’re not given much time to accept the offer. Being rushed to accept a job offer is a sign you might be being scammed. Legitimate employers will give you enough time to make a decision about accepting a job.
Virtual kidnapping
Virtual kidnapping is when a scammer poses as a police officer or military official and gets you to pay them supposedly to avoid you being deported or having your visa cancelled. The scammer will instruct you to fake your own kidnapping so your family pays your ransom.
Virtual kidnapping is becoming more common so you need to be on the lookout for the typical signs so you can tell if you or someone you know could be falling victim to it.
What are the signs of virtual kidnapping?
You might be called by somebody who says they are a government official. Anybody can be targeted by this scam but often the scammer will be speaking Mandarin. The caller might tell you that you’ve had a legal issue such as that:
- you’ve committed a crime
- your identity has been stolen
- there is a problem with your visa.
The caller will tell you that you need to pay them money or cryptocurrency so you aren’t deported or arrested. The contact details of this person might seem to be genuine, including them using the phone number or email address that a government official would have.
As the scam escalates, you might be told to fake a kidnapping. The scammer will ask you to stop talking to your friends and family. You’ll be told to go to a hotel and take photos of yourself wearing a blindfold or pretending to be trapped.
These photos will then be sent to your family who will believe that you have genuinely been kidnapped and will then pay ransom money to have you ‘released’. The scam will continue even after you have followed their instructions.
The scammers could ask you to travel overseas. This can turn into a real kidnapping if you follow the scammer’s instructions.
I think I’m being targeted for virtual kidnapping. What should I do?
- You should immediately stop contact with the scammer. Do not pay them money or cryptocurrency. You are not at risk of being deported if you do not pay. Do not follow the scammer’s instructions.
- Contact the police and report the scam. The scam might continue to be dangerous until it has been reported.
- You should continue talking with your friends and family. Scammers want to isolate you to make your loved ones worried. Stay connected and in contact.
- Do not leave the country at the scammer’s request. This will make you isolated, put you in danger and would make it harder to get you help.
- Talk to your lecturer or other University staff members. Call the campus security team if you are on campus and need support.
Academic scams
Companies might offer their “tutoring” services or trick you into getting them to do your assignments or assessments for you. These scammers, known commonly as ‘contract cheating companies’ could try to steal your money or personal details. They may ask you for your student login details so that they can take information from the University. Contract cheating companies may try to blackmail students who have paid for their services.
Contract cheating is a serious breach of the University’s academic integrity policy and is considered academic misconduct. If you engage in it you may face serious academic consequences. Do not pay companies or people to do your work for you.
Tips for avoiding academic scams
- The University is not affiliated with any tutoring companies. If a tutoring company claiming to be affiliated with the University offers you their services, do not respond.
- Legitimate tutoring companies will never complete assignments for you or demand fees up-front to complete your University work.
- Never submit your academic University task to a commercial service or arrange another person to complete an assignment or sit your exam.
- Never provide your University login details or personal information to anyone you do not trust.
Unwelcome sharing of private images
Scammers might contact you telling you they have compromising or nude photos of you and that they’ll release the images if you don’t pay the scammer. This is illegal, even if they don’t have any photos of you. Act quickly and report this sort of scam to the police. We have information on what to do if you’ve been targeted.
Dating and social media scams
Making friends and dating are common parts of university life but unfortunately scammers might use dating and social media apps to steal money or even your identity.
Keep an eye out for ways that people might be trying to take advantage of you so you can avoid the problems that being scammed on a dating or social media app can bring about.
What are the signs that somebody is trying to scam me online?
- You’re asked to send money. The person talking to you may tell you they have had an accident or a family member needs money for an emergency. They might tell you that they have a great investment opportunity to share with you.
- They want your identity documents. You could be asked to send over a copy of your passport, birth certificate or even something small like a utility bill. These can all be used to steal your identity.
- Things move quickly. Your scammer might quickly begin telling you how special you are and how much they like you.
- They won’t meet you or even show themselves on camera. The scammer will have lots of excuses for why you aren’t able to see what they look like.
- The picture looks too professional. Scammers use stock photos to hide their real identity. If you’re suspicious, major search engines such as Google allow you to do a reverse image search to see if the image is used elsewhere online. This can be a way check if a stock image has been used by scammers.
- You’re encouraged to change platforms. If you’re using a dating website or social media network you could be encouraged to change to another service like WhatApp or Signal. These are encrypted platforms that are harder for authorities to track if you have been scammed.
Threats and violence
Scammers may try to force you into giving up personal details, bank account information or access to other private and important resources. Pretending to be an important government official, they might tell you that you could be arrested, beaten up, kidnapped, or worse, if you don’t give them what you want.
You shouldn’t follow the instructions of these kinds of scammers and instead should protect yourself and report the scam to the police. We have information about what to do if somebody is trying to scam you.
Phishing
Phishing is a scam where somebody tries to trick you into giving out personal or financial details by pretending to be another person, service or institution. Phishing is often done by text message, phone, email or instant message.
Tips for avoiding phishing scams
- Do not click links in emails or text messages asking you to update your personal details, password or banking information. These links can be scams – always go to the website or application and do these things yourself.
- Phishing emails and texts are designed to be real. Just because something looks genuine does not mean it can be trusted.
- Scammers do their homework. Even if somebody seems to know information about you such as your name or Student ID, you should still be careful.
The University will never ask you to pay your fees, verify your personal details, or update your password by clicking on a link in an email or text message. If you’re asked to do these things, you are being scammed.
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Last updated: 08 April 2024
