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![two women's trying to make an online payment on their laptop](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/type-of-scam-images/unusual-payment-scam-thumb.jpg?itok=MKza5OET)
Australian businesses lost $227 million to payment redirection scams in 2021, a 77 per cent increase compared to 2020, the ACCC’s latest Targeting Scams report reveals.
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Scammers stole over $66 million last year from Indigenous Australians, people who identified as culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD), and people with disability
![A couple browsing on their laptop while on a phone call](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/type-of-scam-images/online-shopping2-thumb.jpg?itok=xTcxv3Qp)
Australians lost a record amount to scams in 2021, despite government, law enforcement, and the private sector disrupting more scam activity than ever before.
![Unusual payment scam victims](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/unusual-payment-scam-800x400.jpg?itok=wqElZhRL)
Scamwatch is warning people to be aware of uninvited offers of help to recover money for an up-front payment, following a spike in reports of money recovery scams.
![](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/featured/1531-Scamwatch-Targeting-Scams-Report-THM_1.png?itok=zLnq7f6s)
Payment redirection scams were the most financially damaging scams for Australian businesses in 2020 according to the ACCC’s latest Targeting Scams report.
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Australians lost over $851 million to scams in 2020, a record amount, as scammers took advantage of the pandemic to con unsuspecting people, according to the ACCC’s latest Targeting Scams report released today.
Australian businesses reported over $14 million in losses to Scamwatch due to payment redirection scams last year, and average losses so far in 2021 are more than five times higher compared to average losses in the same period last year.
![](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/Scams_Awareness_Week_360x272.png?itok=JRviIdyH)
The ACCC has launched a podcast series for this year’s National Scams Awareness Week to provide Australians with tips on how to protect their personal and financial details from scammers.
![](/sites/www.scamwatch.gov.au/files/styles/scamwatch_news/public/featured/news.png?itok=b3yri06d)
There has been an increase in scams reported during tax time such as text messages claiming to be from myGov or from agencies claiming to help victims gain early access to their superannuation.
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Data from the ACCC’s annual Targeting Scams report, released this week, indicates scammers don’t discriminate and are targeting a range of different communities in Australia.