Scam Alerts and Media Releases

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The Scam Alerts section contains information about scams that have been notified to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, or have been publicised in the media.

Please note that this list does not cover all scams which are currently circulating.

Remember - scams target you, and you can both recognise a scam, and protect yourself and others from being scammed!  If it’s too good to be true, it probably is!

2008

8 February 2008

NEARLY 100,000 PEOPLE VICTIMS OF IDENTITY THEFT -

Young people, Maori, women and those at the lower end of the socio-economic scale are most at risk from electronic crime such as identity theft, a new survey from the Ministry of Justice shows.Computer viruses, unintentionally viewing offensive internet web pages, and receiving harassing emails and mobile phone messages were also commonly reported by New Zealanders during the course of the survey. The survey's authors said the results were subjective. Some offences reported could not be classified as "crimes" in the legal sense, and the survey did not collect information about how many times offences had occurred or details of the offences. However, the survey still offers up-to-date information about 11 e-crime problems and provides a preliminary measure of the extent of e-crime in New Zealand. The survey found 2.8 percent - equating to 93,000 New Zealanders aged 15 or over - had experienced some form of identity theft. Those that had experienced identity theft tended to be in economically deprived situations, including the unemployed, those living in homes rented from local authorities or Housing New Zealand, and people from smaller ethnic groups.

23rd January 2008

Lottery Scam reported

A scam circulating by email has been reported to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs. The scam email claims to be from Master Card Corporation and congratulates a recipient on winning an International Mega Jackpot (supposedly linked to both Mastercard and Microsoft). A considerable sum of money is ready for pay out directly to the recipient. All the recipient needs to do to claim this money is forward personal details to a 'Claims Administrator' and then make contact to find out how to claim the winnings.

16 January  2008

Phishing scam reported

The Dominion Post has reported that "grammatically challenged" scammers have targeted ANZ Bank customers with an email phishing scam, requesting customers to click on a web link and confirm information. The email scam contained grammatical errors and was sent from customercare@anz.com.nz.

ANZ representatives point out that it is ANZ policy to never seek information by email, particularly passwords. Consumers are reminded that they should be suspicious of any request to provide any information that is received by email.

8 January 2008

Psychic scam attempt reported

The Bay of Plenty Times reported a Psychic Scam attempt made on a Katikati man. The man received a letter from someone claiming to be a psychic named Maria Duval. Her letter included emotional testimonials from well satisfied customers, an impressive profile and a list of apparently successful predictions, ranging from searches that found missing people, to predicting big Lotto wins. The letter requested $30, and in exchange Maria Duval would use her psychic powers to help the Katikati man line up the numbers for the Lotto win that had always eluded him. The letter also guaranteed that the $30 payment would be returned if the man did not get the riches promised.

It was reported that people have fallen for this scam in New Zealand and overseas, and that Police and consumer agencies worldwide have issues warnings about this type of scam.

5 January 2008

Scam involving fake vouchers reported

The Manawatu Standard reported on a scam involving fake vouchers, which were being sold by a woman claiming links to a Maori Trust and showing documentation, supposedly signed by a judge.

The vouchers were being sold for $150 to consumers, and it was claimed that they could be redeemed for $2500 worth of electrical goods. It is not known how many consumers fell for this scam, or how widespread the scamming was.

The woman was arrested and appeared in Palmerston North Court charged with deception. It was reported that other charges were pending.

December 2007 / January 2008

Fraudulent franchise sales reported

In December 2007 and January 2008, the media has been covering events following the sale of non-existent ironing franchises to the unsuspecting. A number of people were scammed, and purchased bogus franchises for $25000 each.

The fraud has been linked to the Green Acres franchise, although the false sales were carried out by an independent franchisee, not an employee of the company or the company itself.

It has been reported that the Serious Fraud Office is currently investigating this fraud.

Scam Alert and Media Releases Archives

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Archived 'reported scam' list

2007 (prior to August 2007)