Investment, romance, hacking scams the weapons of choice as consumer fraud surges

Investment, romance and hacking scams have emerged as the weapons of choice for fraudsters, who scammed West Australians out of almost $14 million last year, according to WA ScamNet.More people over 65 were scammed but those aged 24–35 lost the most moneyThe 2019 figures represented a big jump on the previous year, with numbers up by 10 per cent from 2018.

The largest number of reports came from people aged 65 and over, but the 25–34 age group reported the largest losses, due to seven people who were collectively scammed out of $800,000. Consumer Protection commissioner Lanie Chopping said scammers were becoming increasingly clever and professional.WA's biggest scams in 2019The data showed a 14-fold increase in the number of people being scammed by fraudsters pretending to be government officials, debt collectors and companies.

"These ruthless scammers pretend to be in positions of authority and create a sense of urgency, pressuring the recipient of their call to act impulsively," Ms Chopping said.

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