Gobbill processes 3 times more bills in the last month of each quarter, with installments such as council rates and some electricity bills coming up for payment. This makes this period the ideal time for scammers to target individuals with fraudulent bills.

It’s always good to keep a close eye on your email inbox. Statistics show that online scams are a growing issue, with huge losses to scams over August this year. Australians lost $12.5M in scams last month (August 2017), which is almost double compared to the same time last year. Email fraud makes up an estimated 27% of all scams, with an estimated total of $3.4M lost last month. The hardest hit by scams are older women. Apart from being aware and cautious of scams, keep yourself protected with Gobbill to help check and pay email bills.

August 2017 – Number of reports by Age and Gender

Source: Scamwatch

Gobbill is a partner of the Commonwealth Government Stay Smart Online program. In recent months, the Government Cyber program has issued a number of alerts of new phishing emails carrying malware. The emails pretend to come from a number of Australian institutions including Telstra, Origin Energy and AGL.

Find out more about Gobbill. It’s free to use service that protects you from email bill scams.

EnergyAustralia is being impersonated by cyber criminals in a malware campaign reports  IDG ARN. EnergyAustralia has become the second local energy provider caught up in a major email phishing scam after a “large volume” of malicious emails recently began hitting Australian inboxes, according to email security company, MailGuard.

The Melbourne-based company said the realistic-looking email masquerades as an invoice from the energy company, advising customers that the invoice is due in the coming days. Read more at ARN. EnergyAustralia has also issued their own warnings of the fake bills and provided advice to check on the source/sender of the email. Read more at EnergyAustralia.

Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN) has today issued a high priority alert to beware of the same ransomware disrupting organisations globally, including the UK’s National Health Service.

What can you do? Keep safe by applying software updates and backing up your data regularly. Use Gobbill to check and pay your email bills. You don’t need to know if it’s a fake bill and you don’t need to click on any links. Simply forward the email to your own @gobbill.com email address and it’s taken care for you. Read more gobbill.com.au

Last week, hackers used tools believed to have been developed by the US National Security Agency which has infected tens of thousands of computers in nearly 100 countries, disrupting Britain’s health system and global shipper FedEx. Australian Cyber Security Centre is tracking the attack campaign which goes by various names including WannaCry. It leverages known vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows patched since March 2017 making this disruption and impact preventable.

ACORN reports that they are continuing to monitor the situation closely.

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New Gobbill users can sign up for a FREE account at gobbill.com.au.

Follow us on Facebook/gobbill to receive further alerts.

 
What is Ransomware?

Ransomware is malicious software that makes data or systems unusable until the victim makes a payment. In this case, cyber extortionists tricked victims into opening malicious malware attachments to spam emails that appeared to contain invoices, job offers, security warnings and other legitimate files reports The Sydney Morning Herald. 

About ACORN.

ACORN provides information on how to recognise and avoid common forms of cybercrime, such as hacking, online scams, online fraud, identity theft, attacks on computer systems and illegal or prohibited content, as well as offering advice to those who have fallen victim.

Source: ATO and ACCC ScamWatch

According to the ACCC, increasing numbers of Australians are encountering—and losing money to—scams on social media. If you use social media, we encourage you to be particularly alert for dating and romance scams and fake trader scams. … financial losses that are usually impossible to recover. Here are some tips from ACCC’s ScamWatch [http://bit.ly/2pEshwY] on how to protect yourself.

For businesses, the ATO says – don’t give fraudsters a chance. It’s a timely reminder to review all information security practices in your business, including storage of client information and taking stock of who has access to your systems. Implementing a few simple practices can save you money and stress. Read the ATO’s Top cyber security tips for business [http://bit.ly/2pqH5UG].

A hoax Origin Energy bill loaded with dangerous spyware has targeted tens of thousands of Australians. The well-crafted email branded with the energy provider’s official logo claimed to be an electricity bill for varying amounts, with one sighted by Fairfax Media as high as $911. Source: The Age. Read more

Example:

Users are warned to be aware of a reported phishing scam involving a fake invitation to share a Google Docs document.

The scam sees a user receive a legitimate-looking email that may appear to be from a trusted contact inviting them to share a document on Google Docs.

Users who click on the link are directed to screens that request permission for a malicious service to access their email account, contacts and other sensitive information. If a user grants permission, the malicious service can impersonate the user when sending messages on to other Google email users.

Users may also face the risk of having information and messages from their email accounts compromised.

The scam reportedly targets Google personal and corporate email accounts.

Click here for more information.

Source: Beware of Google Docs phishing scam | Stay Smart Online

Scammers are continuing to target Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) Registry customers with fake emails that attempt to obtain money and personal information. ASIC has posted on its website an example of a scam email that claims to come from the ‘ASIC Messaging Service’ and has the subject line ‘Renewal’. The fake message appears to come from a credible email address.

The email text directs recipients to click on a link to obtain information about renewing their business or company name. However, clicking on the link risks infecting the recipients’ computer with malicious software that aims to extract money or sensitive data, or directs the recipient to a fake invoice for payment.

ASIC warns its customers to be wary of emails that do not address them by name, misspell their details and incorporate unknown attachments.

Gobbill is a partner of StaySmartOnline, a Commonwealth initiative to help protect Australian citizens and businesses from cyber related crimes.

Fraudsters are getting smarter and Australians are falling for it. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australians lost over $83 million to credit card fraud in 2016.

If you have received a suspicious email, avoid the phishing pitfalls and keep yourself safe from scammers with the tips below.

Google it!
If you have received an unexpected email, type the subject line or the content of the email into Google and examine articles regarding similar scams. If you see discussions about the scam, simply delete it and report the scam with government agency Scamwatch.

Avoid clicking on links in suspicious emails.
Internet users are being targeted with increasingly personalised and genuine-looking scams, so being cautious online is essential. Make a rule of avoiding clicking on links in suspicious emails. These links can infect your computer, gathering confidential information from credit card numbers to passwords. If you are unable to find information regarding similar scams, hover over the links in the email. Do you recognise the web address as being legitimate? If the address is unfamiliar to you or does not use https as a secure website link, the email may be a scam.

Contact the organisation.
Billers should never ask for confidential information via email. If you think the email might be legitimate, contact your provider directly before acting. Your biller’s customer service team should be able to provide assistance or put you in contact with a team member who can provide insight into the issue.

Put safety precautions in place.
There are multiple methods to improve online safety. These range from using a password manager to utilising secure encrypted email. New digital services like Gobbill aim to increase email security and protect users from email bill scams. Simply forward through bills to be verified by Gobbill’s fraud detection system. If it is a legitimate bill, it will be automatically paid one day before the due date.

Sign up and use Gobbill for free here.

Researchers are warning of a widely distributed email that claims to be from the Australian Taxation Office but actually aims to infect computers with malicious software.The researchers say the malicious email tries to trick recipients by claiming their Business Activity Statements (BAS) are available to view, and includes a link that claims to enable recipients to download their BAS. The ATO advises that BAS statements are not provided by email.

Source: Researchers warn of fake ATO emails carrying ransomware | Stay Smart Online

You are advised to remain cautious in 2017 about fake emails that claim to be from reputable businesses. These emails are used to deliver viruses, ransomware and other malware. Researchers recently warned people to be aware of fake emails claiming to be from Citibank and Qantas that aim to capture information such as passwords, contact information and bank account details.

Source: Beware of fake Qantas and Citibank emails | Stay Smart Online