Do you know how to recognise a message or an email from a scammer?

There’s a lot of scammer activity about and a free Introduction to Scams talk at Goonellabah Library this Wednesday, October 23, will help you to know what to look for and how to identify a fake message.

Read more about recent scams:

Scam alert: Australia Post warns of fake delivery messages

Phone scammer steals $10K by pretending to be from the NBN

Richmond Tweed Library Regional assistant Brodie Elliott said he’s giving the talk to help people keep a couple of steps ahead of them.

“I’m helping seniors and people unfamiliar with using technology to not be afraid of it,” Brodie said. 

“Some of the scams are finely created and hard to tell apart from a real message from someone.

“For someone not used to using email or the internet, I want to tell them ‘think before you act’ if you receive a text message or email to contact the tax office or Australia Post.

“On an Australian Government website, people have been scammed and lost money to scammers.

“I want to teach people to question what they are seeing.

“I’ll show them ways to work out if it’s a scam by looking at the language used and other key factors.

“For example, if there’s an email from a bank saying ‘Dear customer, click on this link or you’ll be locked out of your account’, but they don’t use your name or member number, or there’s a sense of urgency about it – it’s probably fake.

“I have lots of example to show of scams I’ve received and how much money people have lost with different types of scams like romance scams.

Brodie said that as the internet and doing things online have evolved, scammers have also moved with it.

“There’s a new scam where there’s a phone call from the Ukraine, but when you answer and say ‘hello’ - it cuts out,” he said.

“When you recall the number, it charges your phone bill at a premium rate and they get the money off you from your bill.”

The Introduction to Scams talk is free, but bookings are preferred. You can also just show up on the day.

To book, phone (02) 6625 5100.