Scam Watch, a new program introduced by Griffith City Library, aims to help people be more aware of scammers whether in-person, over the phone, or online.
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The main point Acting People and Programs Team Leader Sharmaine Delgado highlighted was that anyone can be a victim of a scam.
Ms Delgado said, “the Library thought there might be a need for something like this.”
“It might be something we run every second month or every third month to create a bit of awareness,” Ms Delgado said.
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One attendee of the session, who asked not to be named, said she was concerned about emails she had been receiving, and wanted to know how to identify a scam.
She said because of her age she felt more vulnerable, and uncertain how to discard scams on new technology, such as her smart phone.
“I always go on the computer and discard them there – I can’t seem to know what to do [on the phone],” she said.
While she has never been scammed before she is worried about potentially falling victim.
Married couple Yvonne and Gordon Southgate said they came to the session to “not be so ignorant about scams.”
“I see what I think might be scams on Facebook, and I just want to gain as much knowledge as I can about not being scammed or hacked,” Mrs Southgate said.
“Oh yeah, I’ve got £20 million sitting over in England, all I’ve got to do is send my bank details,” Mr Southgate joked.
They said to their knowledge they haven’t been scammed or hacked.
Mr Southgate however said his father, who had dementia, was scammed by people who said they were painters.
“They came and did an absolute terrible job,” Mrs Southgate said.
“It was definitely a scam,” Mr Southgate said.
He said it’s good the session was being provided.
Ms Delgado illustrated some examples where people may fall into the trap of scams, such as those scams cleverly disguised under the names businesses which are familiar to everybody and may be easily trusted. For example, Telstra, or Medicare.
Some other types of scams Ms Delgado noted were dating and romance, buying or selling, fake charities, investments, and unexpected money.
For circumstances where some might be uncertain as to the legitimacy of an email or phone call, Ms Delgao explained ways to find out without becoming a victim of the scam.
One, is to phone the company represented and raise the concern with them.
Two, is to visit the company website and log in there.
Another is to visit the company store in person.
Ms Delgado said it is important not to click on any links within the suspect email, and noted the key things to look out for when receiving any emails is misspelling of company name, absence of an official domain name – or slight change or spelling of official domain sites.
The next session will be on Thursday August 9 at 10am, and there may be more sessions in the future.