Most parents wouldn’t think twice before handing their kids a bit of money in a crisis – but that could come back to bite them, because scammers have started preying on this kindness to fleece Mums and Dads across Australia to the tune of millions of dollars.
NSW Police Cybercrime Squad detectives are urging parents to be careful, as there are increasing reports of so-called “Hi Mum” text scams (see the example above) that are estimated to have cost upwards of $2 million in just a few months.
“Victims of the ‘Hi Mum’ scam date back to at least October last year overseas, but since May, we’ve seen a significant increase in reports not just here in NSW, but jurisdictions across Australia.
“The demographic of victims is predominately aged over 55, and sadly, many parents are falling victim because they’re simply nice people who are concerned for their child’s welfare,” said Detective Superintendent Matthew Craft, Commander of the Cybercrime Squad.
“Hi Mum, I’ve got a new number…”
The scam works like this: you get a text claiming to be from your child, saying they’ve lost their phone or got a new one, and asking you to delete their “old number”.
Over the course of the conversation, they say they need to urgently borrow some money or have you make a payment for them, with some excuse about why they can’t do it themselves. Once you cough up the money, it’s quickly shuffled off into cryptocurrency and you probably never see it again.
“We encourage people to look out for suspicious behaviours demonstrated by these scammers, including their failure to personalise any communication and excuses as to why they can’t speak on the phone,” said Det Supt Craft.
“If you receive a suspicious message on your mobile, particularly through social media or encrypted messaging, reach out to your relative by an alternative method of communication or call to confirm it is in fact them.”
Just over half of “Hi Mum” scam reports have come from NSW and Victoria, followed by Queensland and WA.
For more information about scams – and what to do if you get stung – visit the Scamwatch website.
