Scam Awareness Week, which begins today, is a stark reminder to be super vigilant around all forms of banking security as social media scamming hits new heights.

The week aims to raise awareness to save more people falling prey to unscrupulous scammers. This year's theme is 'Share a story, stop a scam', to encourage Australians to speak up and report scams.

Australians reported losses of $80.2 million to social media scams last year – up 43 per cent on the year before, according to ScamWatch, a government agency.

Bendigo Bank’s head of Customer Protection, Jason Gordon, warns scammers are working around the clock targeting potential victims on social media sites and apps causing untold heartache and costing victims millions of dollars. 

“Social media is a primary origination point of online shopping scams, impersonation scams, investment scams, romance scams, and employment scams, and they are costing Australians dearly,” Mr Gordon said.

Bendigo Bank's Jason Gordon Photo: Mortgage Business

An elderly rural woman (who did not wish to be named) told the Western Plains App she had been saved from being scammed thousands of dollars via her facebook messenger page.

“I received what I thought was a desperate plea from my cousin, who I am really close to, telling me she needed $50,000. I told her I could only give her $10,000 as that was all I had.”

She was given details about where to deposit it and not once thought it wasn’t her cousin.

Luckily she told her daughter about it, who alerted her mother to it being a scam.

“I have never felt so stupid in my life, but I just trusted it was her. It has left me a bit frightened and questioning everything,” she said.

ScamWatch’s advice is:  

STOP – Don’t give money or personal information to anyone if unsure.  

Scammers will offer to help you or ask you to verify who you are. They will pretend to be from organisations you know and trust like Services Australia, police, government, or a fraud service.  

THINK – Ask yourself could the message or call be fake?  

Never click a link in a message. Only contact us, businesses or government using contact information from their official website or through their secure apps. If you’re not sure, say no, hang up or delete.  

PROTECT – Act quickly if something feels wrong.  

According to statistics banks are stopping over $100,000 worth of potential scammers per day so customers are advised to work closely with their banks and institutions to avoid the incidence of scams and fraud and are advised to immediately contact the bank if anything feels wrong. 

“Scammers can learn a lot about you from details you share on your social media accounts. They may also create quizzes, competitions or posts designed to harvest sensitive or personal information that they can then use to guess your account passwords or target you with other scams,” said Mr Gordon.

“Always be wary of the amount of personal information you share online that could be used by scammers and NEVER share PINs and passwords with anyone online.”