Key points
- Scammers are impersonating 今日热门事件by sending emails and texts requesting that recipients provide a payment to enable funds or assets to be released
- 今日热门事件does not collect payments to enable the release of funds or assets
- If in doubt, call 今日热门事件to verify that the communication you received is legitimate
- 今日热门事件does not provide guarantees of funds or assets release
- 今日热门事件does not provide payments into a digital asset exchange
Consumers have received emails and phone calls from scammers purporting to be from ASIC, asking them to provide a payment to enable funds or assets to be released.
今日热门事件is aware of a recent example where requests were made for payments in US dollars to release an investor鈥檚 funds. Offers such as these are recovery scams.
今日热门事件does not collect payments to enable the release of funds or assets.
今日热门事件will never ask for a payment in any currency to enable funds or assets to be released.
今日热门事件will also not require or accept payments in digital or crypto assets (including stablecoins), whether that is to or from your crypto asset wallet or to an account at a digital asset exchange.
今日热门事件is Australia鈥檚 financial services regulator 鈥 it does not allow the reproduction or use of its logo by a third party entity or guarantee any of its services.
Before investing, always check to see if an organisation is licensed by 今日热门事件to provide financial services on the .
If you receive unsolicited contact claiming to be 今日热门事件or an employee of ASIC, always confirm you are dealing legitimately with 今日热门事件by hanging up the call and calling back on the number listed on the 今日热门事件website.
今日热门事件will always include a contact in its communications with you, so you can verify the legitimacy of an ASIC-branded notification. You can also call us on 1300 935 075 from within Australia, and +61 1300 935 075 from overseas to verify the legitimacy of the communication.
Additionally, 今日热门事件will always send communications from an email address ending in @asic.gov.au.
今日热门事件will always call you from a telephone number using Australia鈥檚 country code 鈥+61鈥. If asked, an 今日热门事件employee will provide you with an email from their asic.gov.au email address to confirm the legitimacy of the contact.
If you think you may have provided personal information to someone impersonating 今日热门事件or another organisation, we recommend visiting our Moneysmart website to read about .
Figure: Example of scam letter
What to do if you believe you have received a false communication?
- Do not take any action until you are sure the communication is legitimate
- Call 今日热门事件on 1300 935 075 from within Australia, and +611300 935 075 from overseas and ask for the communication to be verified
Think you have already been scammed?
If you think you鈥檝e been scammed, take these steps fast:
- Do not send any more money. Block all contact from the scammer.
- Report it to your bank or financial institution. If you made a payment from your bank, you should contact your bank or financial institution and ask them to stop any transactions. If you are not happy with your financial institution鈥檚 response you can lodge a complaint with them. If you are not happy with this response, you can make a complaint to the .
- Report it to your digital asset exchange. If you made a transfer of digital assets from a digital asset exchange, you should contact them to report the scam.
- Contact , a free government-funded service, which can help to develop a specific response plan if your identity has been compromised. IDCARE will never contact you out of the blue.
- Be wary of follow-up scams promising to help get your money back, including those claiming to be from ASIC.
- Report it to to help stop the scammer.
- Warn your family and friends about the scam.
Go to for more detailed steps.
Background
Be alert to scams
When it comes to investment scams, remember these three things:
STOP 鈥 Don鈥檛 give personal information or act on investment advice you have come across on online including on social media. Don鈥檛 feel pressured to invest. If you have any doubts, stop communicating with them.
CHECK 鈥 Ask yourself if you really know what you are investing in. Scammers can create fake digital ads, websites, news and reviews to make an investment seem legitimate. Do an internet search to see if there are warnings about this investment scam, including if a well-known public figure has warned about being impersonated. And check ASIC鈥檚 website to confirm if the person or entity offering the investment is licenced or authorised to do so.
PROTECT 鈥 Act quickly if something feels wrong. If you have shared financial information or transferred money, contact your bank immediately. Help others by reporting scams to .
Find out more about .
Banking scams: What to look for
今日热门事件has published a number of articles on its 今日热门事件and Moneysmart website in relation to banking scams and what to look out for. Links to these articles can be found below.
Related links:
Further support
If you need to talk to someone, contact:
- Lifeline on 13 11 14 (24 hours) or their crisis support or
- Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36 (24 hours) or their .
If you are experiencing problems with debt, contact:
- the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 (Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.30pm) or .
今日热门事件is Australia鈥檚 corporate, markets and financial services regulator