This week was Scams Awareness Week (24-28 August), and warnings from both the medical and financial sectors have been issued to keep people vigilant to the dangers of scams and how they can manifest. The Australian Medical Association (AMA) is calling on the federal government to act urgently on AI-generated deepfakes, warning the technology is being used to impersonate trusted health professionals and spread potentially harmful misinformation. They have renewed their call for stronger protections in a letter to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, welcoming the establishment of the Office of AI and urging the government to prioritise its digital duty of care policy to help protect Australians. AMA President Dr Danielle McMullen said a regulatory response that keeps pace with emerging risks and supports public confidence in digital health information is urgently needed. “Scams Awareness Week is a timely reminder that increasingly sophisticated online deception can have real-world consequences,” Dr McMullen said. “Deepfake campaigns that misrepresent trusted clinicians can undermine evidence-based care, spread misinformation about prescription medicines, and encourage consumers to abandon clinically validated therapies in favour of unproven alternatives. “It should not be left to the clinicians whose identities are being stolen and misused to identify, report and pursue the removal of deceptive content. “The AMA supports a digital duty of care that places responsibility on AI providers and digital platforms to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harms arising from their services. “This should include strong transparency requirements, effective safeguards against unauthorised and deceptive synthetic content, and timely takedown mechanisms for harmful deepfakes. We are calling on the government to move quickly to put these regulations in place to reduce the risk of harm to Australians.” The AMA has recommended a regulatory framework be developed that includes: mandatory identification of the individual or company responsible for any online post promoting a medical product or service through a publicly accessible and designated contact point (for example, email) an accessible portal for individuals to report fake, misleading or AI-generated content. unsubscribing mechanisms enabling users to opt out of unsolicited medical advertising time-bound takedown requirements, mandating platforms to remove harmful content within a specified period after a complaint is lodged appropriate enforcement powers, including the ability to issue infringement notices for non-compliance. In the financial sector impersonation scams are prevalent. The Newcastle Greater Mutual Group (NGM Group) reported that a fast-thinking manager at the Bathurst branch of the Newcastle Permanent saved a customer from being scammed out of almost $10,000. A young woman phoned the branch after receiving a call about a fraudulent transaction from a person who claimed to be a representative of the customer-owned bank. "As soon as I spoke to them, I could hear the panic and urgency in their voice," branch manager Keira Guihot said. "The customer explained that they had been asked to log on to internet banking, which immediately raised alarm bells for me." After instructing the customer to immediately hang up on the other call, Mrs Guihot quickly worked with the Newcastle Permanent Fraud Team to block internet banking access, secure the customer's accounts and place stops on their bank cards. "We do a lot of work in the community to educate people about scams and what to look out for.” "Education has really paid off here, with this customer using a verified phone number to call us and check the legitimacy of the scammer's claim before things escalated. "Scammers can place a lot of pressure on their targets to act fast, but the simple act of stopping and checking has prevented a significant financial loss. Head of NGM Group Financial Crime Operations Grant Williams said bank impersonation scams were becoming increasingly sophisticated. "Scammers want to take as much money from you as they can, and they will put in a lot of effort to convince you to hand over your details," he said. "This often starts with a text or a phone call to get your attention, and from there they want you to panic, click on a link quickly or hand over information before you have had time to stop and consider. "Always take a moment to think before you do anything - a moment of pause could be the difference between protecting your finances and losing money to a scam." Some safeguards to financial fraud include: · Never click links in unexpected text messages or emails claiming to be from your bank. · Do not open or download email attachments without verifying their legitimacy. · If you receive a suspicious phone call, hang up and contact your bank directly using the official phone number from its website. · Never share passwords, PINs or internet banking security codes with anyone. · Monitor your bank accounts regularly and report suspicious activity immediately.
