The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has registered new rules that will help protect Australians against SMS scams, Federal Member for Corangamite Libby Coker MP said today.
The Australian Government has welcomed the rules, which will require all telecommunications providers to identify, trace and block SMS scams. They also require providers to publish information to assist their customers to proactively manage and report SMS scams, to share information about scam messages with other mobile providers and report identified scams to authorities.
Ms Coker said this change will take a step toward protecting Australians, their identity and their money, and disrupt the business model of scammers.
“Most Australians have either received a scam text message, or know someone who has, and know how easy it can be to fall into the trap. An SMS scam reportedly impacting Deakin Uni students is a classic example,” Ms Coker said.
"These new rules aim to disrupt scammers’ business models, which will help to protect vulnerable Australians against scammers accessing their bank account, social media and online businesses.
“This comes on the back of the recent events at Deakin University, further emphasising the importance of treating any texts from unknown number with the upmost of caution.”
The new rules have been developed by the telecommunications industry peak body, Communications Alliance, following a period of consultation with telecommunications providers and consumer representatives.
It takes scammers an average of 7 days from the initial theft of personal and account information for criminals to commit multiple identity crimes with that information.
According to ACCC ScamWatch data, financial losses from SMS scams this year to date have more than doubled compared to the same period in 2021 – from around $3.8 million to over $9.1 million. SMS scams accounted for about 32% of all reported scams to date this year.
Providers will face penalties of up to $250,000 for breaching ACMA directions to comply with the rules.
These rules follow separate new anti-scam rules that came into force on 30 June 2022, requiring telecommunication providers to use multi-factor authentication before approving high-risk customer transactions, including SIM swaps.
For more information, visit https://www.acma.gov.au/phone-scams
