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![Scamwatch COVID-19 thumbnail](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/2020-04/SCAMWATCH-COVID-19_360x272.png?itok=hClu9yey)
Unfortunately, scammers are taking advantage of the spread of coronavirus to exploit and play on the fears of consumers across Australia.
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Australians are set to lose a record amount to scams in 2019, with projections from losses reported to Scamwatch and other government agencies so far expected to exceed $532 million by the end of the year, surpassing half a billion dollars for the first time.
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Scams reported to the ACCC involving identity theft or the loss of personal/banking information have cost Australians at least $16 million this year, and this figure is likely to be just the tip of the iceberg.
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Australians who are older, Indigenous or have disability reported record losses in 2018 according to the ACCC’s annual Targeting Scams report released this week.
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Australian businesses reported more than 5800 scams with losses exceeding $7.2 million in 2018, a 53 per cent increase compared to 2017, according to the ACCC’s Targeting scams report.
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People are increasingly being caught out by celebrity endorsement scams, with reports to Scamwatch increasing 400 per cent and losses increasing a staggering 3,800 per cent so far in 2018.
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Scamwatch is warning the Australian community to be wary about investment scams, with statistics revealing Australians are collectively losing $4.3 million a month to these scams.
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Scammers swindled nearly $4.7 million from Australian businesses in 2017 according to the ACCC’s latest Targeting scams report – a 23 per cent increase compared to 2016.
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Australians lost more money to scammers in 2017 than in any other year since the ACCC began reporting on scam activity.
![alt=""](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/type-of-scam-images/online-shopping.png?itok=3HLCmMuX)
This Stay Smart Online Week, the ACCC is warning the community to watch out for common online scams they might encounter.