Centrelink issues urgent warning about $1,800 'bonus payment' scam

Question

Centrelink has issued an urgent warning to Aussies about a 'bonus payment' scam.

Services Australia said on Monday there were 'unofficial websites' that had been  sharing misleading information about a fake payment of $1,800 for those on the Age Pension.

'They may encourage you to read about a new ‘one off' or ‘bonus' payment by clicking a link. Only trust website and website for official information about our payments,' it said. 




Services Australia have issued an urgent warning to Aussies to only go to their official website after people have been sharing misinformation from unofficial sites

On the official Services Australia website was an example of the scam, which said: '$1,800 extra Australia pension coming. Who is eligible, fact check about payment dates.'

According to the government department, unsuspecting Aussies have been sharing the links to the fake websites on social media, believing they are official.

'If the website URL doesn't end in .gov.au then it isn't an official government website. It could be a scam,' it said.

'We'll always let you know when there are changes to any of our payments or services. 

'We'll let you know on our official website and official social media channels.'




Services Australia showed the scam on their website, warning Aussies to be careful

There are multiple Services Australia scams circulating, including ones involving  myGov and Medicare.



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Other Centrelink scams include fraudsters pretending to be from the government agency calling people to tell them they have to immediately pay a debt or face arrest.

According to the National Anti-Scam Centre's Scamwatch, about $92million has been lost to scams so far in 2024 by Aussies.

In 2023, there were over 601,000 scams reported by Australians, resulting in a loss of $2.74billion - less than the $3.1billion lost in 2022.

The top five most lucrative ways Australians were scammed in 2023 were by investment, remote access, romance, phishing and Keto Xplode Stiftung Warentest payment redirection.