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Telecom company scam alert

Bella KitchenSouth Western Times

Residents are being warned to be vigilant of scammers posing as telecommunication companies requesting personal information and account details.

Scammers are calling claiming to be technicians from companies such as Telstra, Vodafone and Optus, asking people to supply account numbers, bank card information and personal details.

A WA ScamNet spokesperson said these types of scams are known as “phishing scams” and are designed to gather personal and financial information from the targets which exposes them to being victims of identity theft.

“A scammer contacts you out of the blue pretending to be from a legitimate business such as a bank, telephone/internet service provider or a government agency, you may be contacted by email, social media, phone call, or text message,” the spokesperson said.

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WA ScamNet said there were some clues for people to recognise if something might be a scam.

“The scammer may ask for your bank details and if they already have those they may ask you to quote the three or four-digit security code printed on your card,” the spokesperson said.

They will tell you to urgently open a link or call someone and they can make you feel threatened or scared.

To protect against scams it is advised never to share any personal information about yourself or your bank details, never let a stranger take control of your computer and not on any links in messages and emails.

Scams should be reported to WA ScamNet and Consumer Protection.

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