I drove an elderly neighbour into town where he wanted to go to the post office to send some money. Apparently someone rang and told him, that the government owed him six thousand dollars from overcharged rates and taxes. However to get this money, he had to send $199 (for solicitors fees) via Western Union to a particular code no — CH10 and phone no. 0280074112.
They also asked for his Date of Birth and his Credit Union membership No.
I told him immediately, that this was a scam and not to send the money and also to notify the Credit Union about the situation, because they can use this to create false credit cards in his name.
He then said: “I thought, that the person with a foreign accent was a bit odd, but it might be OK, because a lot of Australian companies these days use offshore call centres.”
I say: Never, ever give anyone who calls you, your Date of Birth — no matter who they say they are calling from (bank, government etc) Because it is the key part of your identity and can be used to forge documents.
Dick Blume
Armidale
