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Australian businesses reported more than $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.
Total losses are much higher as these scams are reported to a range of different organisations.
In a payment redirection scam, also known as business email compromise scams, scammers impersonate a business or its employees via email and request that money, which usually is owed to the legitimate business, is sent to a fraudulent account.
“Payment redirection scams impact businesses across many industries, including real estate, construction, law, recruitment, and universities,” ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard said.
“Scammers tend to target new or junior employees, or even volunteers, as they are less likely to be familiar with their employer’s finance processes or the types of requests to expect from their…
