What’s happened?
With millions of parcel deliveries expected around the country, Australia Post is seeing widespread scam text (SMS) messages being sent to people, using their brand.
These fake SMS messages may tell you that your parcel is ‘detained’, ‘you’ve missed a delivery’ or there’s an ‘important update’ to your delivery – and include a link to click on for more details. As scammers use technology that imitates a caller ID, these scam texts can even appear in the same conversation thread as a legitimate Australia Post conversation.
By clicking on the links in a scam message, you are usually taken to a fake Australia Post website to enter your personal or financial details. Clicking on these links can also infect your device with malicious software (malware).
How to spot an Australia Post SMS phishing scam
Does it affect me?
Anyone can be a target, whether you are waiting for an Australia Post delivery or not. Scammers cast their net wide, hoping to catch someone out who might be waiting for a parcel delivery this holiday season.
How do I stay safe?
To protect yourself from scam text messages or other fake messages that use Australia Post branding:
Check if the message is legitimate by contacting the organisation it claims to be from. Use contact details that you find separately to those provided in the message (for example, manually type the official website into your browser to find the business’ contact details).
Look at the web link without clicking on it, to see if it is an Australia Post web address or not.
Look out for an unusual sense of urgency, including demands for payment.
Think before you click and never provide your personal or financial details by reply SMS or email.
Australia Post will never SMS customers asking for personal or financial information, or a payment.
If you think you’ve received a scam SMS (or email) claiming to be from Australia Post, report it to scams [at] auspost.com.au or www.scamwatch.gov.au.
If you’ve sent money or personal banking details to a scammer, contact your bank immediately for assistance. See our Get Help page for more advice and support.
More information
To stay up-to-date on the latest online threats and how to respond, sign up to the Stay Smart Online Alert Service, www.staysmartonline.gov.au/alert-service.
To find out about the latest Australia Post-themed scams, visit their website at www.auspost.com.au/about-us/about-our-site/online-security-scams-fraud/s….
For more info on shopping safely online this holiday season, head to www.staysmartonline.gov.au/onlineshopping.
If you’ve been the victim of a cybercrime, including financial loss, report it to ReportCyber at www.cyber.gov.au/report.