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Westpac SafeCall is the new feature announced by the bank, which will “allow customers to receive calls via the app that are Westpac branded, verified by Optus and show a reason for the call. This will help give customers more certainty in the legitimacy of the call, at a time when bank impersonation scams are among the most common scam types impacting customers.”
Bank impersonation scams are common for banking customers. In fact, according to the ABS, during the 2022–23 financial year:
- 8.7 per cent of persons (1.8 million) experienced card fraud.
- 2.5 per cent of persons (514,300) experienced a scam.
- 1.0 per cent of persons (199,100) experienced identity theft.
- 2.1 per cent of persons (434,300) experienced online impersonation.
Scamwatch has urged consumers not to assume a person you’re dealing with is who they say they are: “Scammers trick you into thinking they are from organisations such as the police, government, banks, and well-known businesses. They can even pretend to be your friend or family member.
“Scammers use technology to make their call appear to come from a legitimate phone number. Their texts appear in the same conversation thread as genuine messages from an organisation.”
This initiative from Westpac and Optus will hopefully help reduce losses experienced through bank scams.
“Using this technology, when a customer receives a call from Westpac, their phone will display Westpac as the caller, along with a verification by Optus and a reason for the call. This will help to provide customers with the confidence and added security to help beat scammers and know that they really are talking to their bank,” said Westpac CEO Peter King.
“We’re continuing to invest in scam prevention and detection measures and are currently detecting 69 per cent of all scam cases. Westpac SafeCall will help us reduce bank impersonation scams and make Australia an even harder target for scammers.”
Optus interim CEO Michael Venter said the partnership between the companies detailed the importance of leveraging technology to combat cyber crime.
“Optus is proud to partner with Westpac to deliver this world-leading solution that will help keep customers safe from scammers and fraudsters. By using our market-leading technology, we are able to provide Westpac customers with branded and verified calls that clearly identify interactions with the bank. This is a great example of how Optus is leveraging its network capabilities and digital solutions to create value for our partners and their customers,” Venter said.
The ACCC said that in 2022, Scamwatch received 14,603 reports about bank impersonation scams, resulting in more than $20 million in losses.
“We are incredibly concerned about bank impersonation scams because they can be so convincing, they are very hard to detect. What’s equally worrying about this particular scam, is that it is emptying every last cent out of victims’ savings accounts, with losses averaging $22,000 and more than 90 reports of losses between $40,000 and $800,000. This causes both financial and emotional devastation,” said ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe.
“We know of a man who lost over $500,000 after receiving a call from someone claiming to be from a major bank’s security department, wanting to know if a payment had been authorised.
“In another case, a man lost $38,000 after receiving a scam text message about a suspicious transaction. The scam text appeared in the same conversation thread as legitimate messages from his bank. He called the number in the text and was put through to a member of the banks’ fraud team. Unfortunately, it was an elaborate scam and he lost everything.”
[Related: Westpac reports 30% drop in scams]
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