Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I particularly thank the member for Hinkler for coming along to hear this speech. I know that he as the deputy chair of the public works committee just can't get enough of me as the chair! Seriously, I rise in support of the Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill, as brought to the House by the honourable Minister for Communications. This bill is an important part of Labor's multifaceted approach to combating SMS scams and protecting Australian consumers. As the member for Aston knows, this legislation is welcomed by all constituents around Australia, including by Moreton constituents who have contacted my office to share their terrible experiences with SMS scams. I'm sure the member for Aston has people in her electorate who are concerned about this and distressed by it. They need their phones for all sorts of health reasons and the like, but then they're getting scams.

SMS scams are a scourge, and they're not going away. In 2023, Australians reported 37 per cent more scams via text message compared to the previous year. Unfortunately, it can be pretty easy to fall for a text scam. Your phone pings, you glance at it and you recognise the name of your bank, a toll-charging service that you use, a government agency, or a courier used to deliver online purchases. You're not to know that these are fake text messages that are sent using sender identification in the message headers. If you click on the link in the text, you'll then be deceived into responding to the message or taking the actions the message suggests. If worst comes to worst, you may end up losing your personal information or your money. So I stress: don't click on the hyperlink.

It might seem like a simple scam, but the criminals and the technology behind it are actually very sophisticated. Sometimes scam messages can appear in the same message chain as real messages from the organisation that you're dealing with. This makes them even harder to spot.

Scammers also prey on our fears. The scam messages often contain threats to cease a service or to charge a fine if you don't act immediately—or worse. They may falsely claim that you or your accounts have been hacked, that you have a substantial bill that needs urgent payment or that there is a problem with your package delivery. It's not just a Nigerian prince offering you marriage or a great deal.

We're all told, 'Never click on a link in an SMS if you don't know the sender.' We all need to remember this, but, in our busy lives, when you recognise the sender and you know you have a parcel due for delivery, it's all too easy to click on the link. It doesn't occur to you that it's not really StarTrack couriers or Australia Post who have messaged you.

This bill takes action against the insidious practice of SMS scamming. The measures it contains take the scammers on by making it harder for them to operate. The crux of the bill is the establishment and maintenance of a register of legitimate sender IDs by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, or ACMA. This builds on the rules registered by ACMA in 2022, which have blocked more than—wait for it—533 million scam texts between July 2022 and March 2024. It also builds on the information gathered by the pilot register, which was launched in December last year. The pilot program included organisations such as the Commonwealth Bank, the National Australia Bank, Services Australia and the ATO. The bill allows for the register to be either voluntary or mandatory, enabling the decision on its status to be implemented by the end of the year. It also dictates that the register can be maintained either partially or wholly by a contracted third party.

The bill will also put in place an industry standard for telecommunications providers who manage SMS traffic. These providers will be required to check texts with sender IDs to ensure they are on the register. Those which are not may be blocked, or the text message may be tagged with a warning or labelled as fraudulent. There is some set-up work to do. ACMA will have the power to make determinations by legislative instrument. These will outline the requirements for access to the register as well as set out some admin and operation guidelines. All these will be in place before the register commences.

The successful rollout of the register is also dependent on the deployment of a sophisticated IT system which has strong privacy and security features. It will also need to interact securely with the systems and processes used by the telecommunications industry. The legislation will commence once the decision over voluntary or mandatory permission is made by the government. And the bill accepts that ACMA needs time to establish the register to take IT requirements into account. The current timeline for the rollout is late next year and will most probably be after a transition and testing period.

The register will benefit Australian consumers by decreasing the number and frequency of SMS scams. It will also protect legitimate brands and restore confidence and trust in SMS communications. Importantly, it will disrupt the business model of scammers and make Australia—one of the biggest economies on earth, the 13th biggest economy—a less attractive target for their dodgy operations.

We know would-be scammers will attempt to find other ways to target Australians once the register is operational; that's the nature of being a wealthy country. The bill therefore allows for the Minister for Communications to respond to evolving scam attempts in the future. The minister will be able to make determinations regarding future new communication services which might use sender IDs. The bill also enables the minister to use an identifier other than letters, numbers or symbols in the future and allows for the extension of the register to retain additional relevant information.

Since coming to government Labor has taken incisive and comprehensive action against scamming. We established the National Anti-Scam Centre as part of the ACCC. The NASC provides several services, including the Scamwatch service, to share up-to-the-minute information on scams and the best way for Australians to protect themselves. It also collects and shares information across government and business sectors and coordinates action to combat scammers. I recommend checking out the Scamwatch website and sharing it amongst your constituents or friends or neighbours or elderly parents. It provides valuable tips on how to spot a scam text and the steps to take if you click on a link in a message. It's something my community has particularly appreciated, and when I brought the minister, Stephen Jones, up to talk about scams it gave people information and the confidence to then talk to their friends about it.

The Albanese government has done more than that. We've directed $67½ million over four years to bolstering the Fighting Scams initiative to protect Australians from financial harm. The funding enables the establishment of a scams code framework. This focuses on mandatory industry codes for banks, digital communications platforms and telecommunications providers in regard to preventing, detecting and stopping scams. The code requires all telecommunications providers to identify, trace and block SMS scams. It will also support ACMA to enforce compliance with providers. This funding is in addition to the nearly $87 million over four years announced in last year's budget. We are committed to taking on the scammers, and, slowly but surely, we are winning.

This bill is backed by two rounds of extensive consultation with the public and stakeholders. ACMA commenced targeted consultation in February last year with the telecommunication providers, government agencies, merchants and consumer organisations to establish the level of support for a proposed register. The second phase of consultation was held in February and March this year and focused on how the Australian register should operate—that is, whether it should be mandatory or voluntary. We anticipate that ACMA will hold further consultations to decide the final operational details before implementation—whatever will be most efficient.

The establishment of the register and the other measures reflects the Albanese Labor government's actions to protect Australian consumers. As the Minister for Communications said:

Cracking down on criminals trying to rip off hardworking Australians is a priority for this Government.

They are great words. I commend her work, and I commend this bill to the House.

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Carrying on where the member for Moreton left off, it's incredibly important that we understand that those who are most likely to have to deal with scammers are the vulnerable: those who are elderly and those who are, basically, uninitiated. We need to try to convince people to not open that link. Do not let that cookie onto your phone. No, that person has not sent you out a fine for not paying a toll; this is a scam. Vulnerable people, who are generally decent people, believe that everything they get is bona fide, and so they have a propensity to get caught up in these scams.

We find it's just like a thief. If a thief breaks into a house they usually come back, because they know they can do it. That is the problem. Scammers realise that there's a vulnerability in a person, and that opens the person up to further scams. The analytics that sit behind the software show that this person is actually going further, spending more time looking at it and looking at the message for longer. Therefore, they have a propensity to be vulnerable.

In regional areas, sometimes we get things that are quite hilarious. This one is a bit interesting. I'm in Danglemah. Danglemah is in the middle of nowhere. There is no-one around me except the boys that I grew up with. It's off the grid. I get a message that there is some wonderful, delightful human female who wants to meet me, and she's only a kilometre away. So, I stand on the hill and wonder which tree she's living in! If that was in a city context, someone might be vulnerable enough to think, 'I'm lonely, and this is a chance for me to meet another person.' Obviously, it's a scam. The other one that happens out in the regions is: I haven't paid my tolls. To whom have I not paid my tolls? If I was living in Sydney, that would be something I'd very likely consider to be an issue.

What is incredibly important is that it shows our reliance on telecommunications and how good people rely on telecommunications. The one thing worse than a scam is not having any telecommunication service whatsoever. In our area the capacity of scammers to contact people has been increased because of the increase in mobile phone towers. I want to run through the mobile phone towers that are in our area to give a sense of how, in New England, this has increased the propensity for people to be contacted by scammers 24/7. There are new mobile phone towers at Balala, Bonshaw, Drake, Dungowan, Hillgrove, Kings Plains, Rocky Creek, Urbenville, Walcha Road—that's near me—Woolomin, Attunga, Barraba, Bruxner Highway at Sandy Hills, Bruxner Highway at Tabulam, Duri, Elsmore, Fossickers Way between Barraba and Manilla, Hallsville, Invergowrie, Manilla, Moonbi, Mount Carrington, Oxley Vale, Piallamore, Sping Mountain Road at White Rock Mountain west of Glen Innes, the Warral side of Tamworth, Walcha, Westdale, Baldersleigh, Koreelah, Pinkett, Mount Hourigan, Doughboy Mountain—where we've just stopped the swindle factories; I'm really happy about that—Fig Tree Hill near Copeton Dam, Copeton Dam itself, Kingstown, Moonan Flat down near Ellerston, Legume, Torrington, Wellingrove Creek, Weabonga—it's not what people do; it's a village just over the hill from me—Spring Ridge, Blackville, Gilgai, Bukkulla, Glen Elgin, Mole River Exchange, Tenterfield, Watsons Creek and Woods Reef Exchange. We have always tried to make sure people have access to mobile phone technology. In so doing, scammers have access to people 24/7.

I fully support this bill, the Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024. I think it's really important. It shows that we have the ability to go to people who provide telecommunications and put some further licensing agreements and conditions on them.

I think in the future we'll have to look at social media and what they are doing, because sometimes they seem to run riot without any controls whatsoever. As one person sells a scam to rip off a vulnerable person, another person finds a 16-year-old girl, tells her she's fat, gets her into that evil net of self-identification and self-deprecation and draws them down into a very dark place. This is something that I've been very passionate about in this place for a long while. I don't know why we're so scared to take these people on, but we obviously are.

This bill, as it comes forward, is going to, hopefully—it will never catch up with the scammers, because scammers, by their very nature, are criminals. Most criminals are pretty stupid, but the good ones are quite ingenious, and the ingenious ones will find a new and better way to slip inside the net, to find the person who's vulnerable and probably not as educated and to work out how to get a hold of their money. In the story of scammers we find people whose lives have been completely destroyed. It's not a case of losing hundreds; it's not a case of someone losing thousands; for some of them it's not losing tens of thousands but losing hundreds of thousands of dollars. Once a person has access to certain details, especially banking details, it's an incredibly dangerous thing. This is what we get in certain areas. One of the other classic scams, of course, is people with all the livery and the impersonation of a bank asking for details in regard to changing an account or updating information. People update their information and, when they come back, all the money—everything—has gone from their account.

We also managed to follow through some of these scammers to see that there's another insidious side to this. In prompting telephone calls, where you get a call from someone and they're obviously overseas—for me, I thought there was some sort of perverted fun in asking them, if they're from Australia, what they thought about how Manly played on the weekend or, if they were in Melbourne, how St Kilda went on the weekend. Another way I always find to annoy them is to just keep talking to them, forever, ask them stupid questions, put on a stupid accent and see if they want to go out for lunch until they realise that you're not vulnerable—you're crazy and annoying—and hang up on you.

However, what I didn't know is that a lot of these people are basically in slave labour. In places such as Cambodia they are indentured for nothing. They have no freedoms and their lives are an absolute misery. We're talking about a person who is basically locked in a room with other people who are beaten up and who have no freedoms whatsoever. This is the other side of scams, which a lot of people don't understand. This is another reason why we should not only have legislation against the scammers but go to the source countries and say, 'Well, what are you doing to do this?'

Some people, very ingeniously and very, very decently, have said to the person: 'Can other people hear what you are saying right now? Are you okay? Can you tell me if you are alright? Are you free?' On the odd occasion, people have said 'No, I'm not.' Then they've said, 'Where exactly are you?'

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 16:49 to 17:09

What is also part of the telecommunications issue which is so important, as I just mentioned before, is that, in a lot of countries, the people who actually make these scam calls are basically slave labour. They are locked up. They are in quite insidious circumstances. So I temper my response somewhat to people when they call up, because I consider the exact circumstances that that person may find themselves in in the Philippines, in Cambodia or in other areas. So this is bad on all levels, and that is another very good reason why we have to try and stamp it out. It's because people can be contactable just about anywhere on the planet that scammers find this so attractive. You don't have to walk down the street. In the past, scammers went door to door, knocking on them, trying to find gullible people. But now they don't have to. They just have a computer, it calls a number, another person deals with the call, and off they go. We've been trying to make sure that world is covered.

We're trying now also to fight for further mobile phone towers for Kruiapple—which is just out of Yetman—Bunnan, Rouchel and Gundy in the Upper Hunter, Blue Mountain to cover the Enmore and the Winterbourne areas, Legume, Sandy Flat south of Tenterfield, Rangers Valley, Guyra, Niangala, Woolbrook—that one is very important, because that's near me, and I went to Woolbrook Public School—and Port Stephens Cutting, which is incredibly dangerous, and we've got to fix it up. I call on the government to get that $20 million out, because someone is going to get killed on that. There's Werris Creek. I used to live in Wellington Vale.

By reason of mobile telecommunications, people are never away. If they've got a phone in their pocket, and if they've got SMS, they're a potential target for scammers. As such, we have to make sure that, with this legislation and others, we will never wipe them out. But we have to partially catch up, and that's what this legislation does.

Carina Garland (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My community in Chisholm, like so many communities around the country, are absolutely sick of scammers taking advantage of them. Scams are an absolute scourge.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 17 : 12 to 17:21

As I was saying, in my electorate of Chisholm, people are really worried about scams. It's an absolutely scourge in our community. Over the last couple of years since I was elected, we've held many different forums to advise people in my electorate of what they can do to protect themselves from scams. We've held forums in local libraries, in community centres, in bowling clubs, in retirement villages and online, and we've had hundreds and hundreds of people attend. The spots for these forums are snapped up really quickly because people are so concerned about scams in the community.

We have distributed thousands and thousands of copies of The little black book of scams to neighbourhood houses, to various community groups and to many residents throughout our electorate. A reminder to any Chisholm local who would like The little black book of scamsplease contact my office. We're very happy to send you a copy.

I'm sick of scams too. Like so many people, I get texts and phone calls almost every day. I'm really pleased to speak on this piece of legislation today and really proud to be part of a government that is taking meaningful action against scams.

The Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill marks a really important step in our government's multipronged approach to combating SMS scams. The establishment and maintenance of a register by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the ACMA, under this bill complements rules registered by the ACMA in 2022 which blocked more than 533 million scam texts between July of that year and March 2024.

This register will also complement our broader, comprehensive approach to scams. This includes the establishment of the National Anti-Scam Centre, the NASC, as an innovative, world-leading, public and private sector partnership to disrupt and stop scammers in Australia; and the introduction of a scams code framework requiring telcos, banks and digital platforms to prevent, detect and disrupt scams.

Now, just a little bit of advice to people who may be watching and interested in what they can do to protect themselves from scams—

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 17:24 to 17:33

As I was saying before the suspension, there are some really practical things that people can do to try and protect themselves from scams—

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 17:34 to 17:44

There are a number of things people can do to protect themselves from scams. The first is to stop and slow down the communications with someone who might have contacted you. Don't give any information to people who contact you via SMS or via phone or via email. Think: Could it be fake? Is this a genuine communication? Verify it with the official contact number or website, and don't click links on SMSs that you may receive. Protect yourself. Think and act quickly. If you need to, contact your bank, and make sure you put a report in with Scamwatch. That's certainly what I do every time I'm contacted by a scammer.

The scams that are targeted by this particular bill are fake text messages—which I know we all receive—that are sent by SMS using a sender identification in the message headers that looks like those of well-known companies or brands, including banks, government agencies such as myGov or Australia Post, and consumer product companies such as Coles or Linkt. Often scammers are relying on us being busy and trusting these organisations so that we're not thinking about the communications we're receiving. But, as I said, stop, think and protect. That can really help you when you are being targeted by scammers. But there's obviously a very big role for government here, which is why we're introducing this legislation.

Unfortunately, people who receive these SMS impersonation scams are often deceived into responding or taking action suggested by these text messages. These are absolutely not victimless crimes, and the theft of personal information or money from innocent victims is an incredibly sad outcome of this scam SMS traffic.

This bill will require the ACMA to establish and maintain a register of legitimate sender IDs. The ACMA can also engage a contracted provider to partially or wholly maintain the register. This bill will also allow for either a voluntary or mandatory register. Following public consultation on this issue earlier this year, an announcement on whether the use of the register will be voluntary or mandatory for entities wishing to send messages using sender IDs will be made by the end of this year.

This bill confers powers on the ACMA to make determinations by legislative instrument. These instruments will set out further requirements for access to the register and for its administration and operation, which will need to be in place before the register commences operation. An industry standard for telecommunications providers who manage SMS traffic will also be made by the ACMA. The standard will require telcos who manage SMS traffic to check SMSs that use sender IDs to ascertain whether a sender ID is on the register and whether the sender is a registered party. If not, the telco could be required to block or tag the SMS as fraudulent. Once the framework for the register is fully established, businesses and entities can be invited to apply to have their sender IDs placed on the register.

Once operational, the register will decrease the frequency and impact of SMS impersonation scams on consumers. The operation of the register will also increase protections for legitimate brands and agencies against bad actors impersonating them. This will disrupt the business model of SMS impersonation scams. This register will boost public confidence in SMS as a communications channel, and the operation of the register will ultimately make Australia a harder target for scam activity.

Similar registers are already in operation in a number of other jurisdictions, including Singapore. The Singapore sender ID registry requires mandatory registration for organisations wishing to use SMS sender IDs. Research released in November last year found that 87 per cent of Singaporean consumers said the register has made it easier to identify the legitimacy of SMSs they receive. Sixty-three per cent also noted that the register has resulted in them receiving fewer spam or scam messages. This is good for restoring confidence in the communications channel and reducing the number of spam and scam messages. This is what we want to see in Australia.

A deferred commencement date for this act will accommodate the fact that there are details relating to the application process and some operational features that are dependent on the government decision scheduled for later this year as to whether registration will be voluntary or mandatory. The register will need to deploy a complex ICT mechanism that is capable of interacting with systems and processes used by the telco industry, and it will of course need to have robust privacy and security settings. Commencement of the act is by proclamation. If no proclamation occurs, the provisions will commence automatically six months after the act receives royal assent. Once the legislation commences, the ACMA will be able to establish the register.

To allow the ACMA the time needed to finalise these preparations, the bill provides that the ACMA must establish the register as soon as practicable. This will provide the ACMA with the necessary flexibility to prepare for the commencement of the register's operation, and it is anticipated that the register will be operational by late 2025. The commencement of the register's operation is likely to be preceded by a transition period during which entities will submit and register their sender identifications.

It's really important, of course, that we try and do what we can to stay one step ahead of scammers, because often they use very sophisticated techniques to try and trick people. Something that often comes up during the scam forums that I hold is that people are embarrassed and ashamed that they have been targeted by scammers. I want to reassure people that anyone can fall victim to scammers. This is what they do every day. They are very sophisticated in what they do and they take advantage of people being busy. They often rely on making people feel there is a sense of urgency. They play on emotion. These are manipulative, sophisticated players. I want to reiterate the importance of people making sure that they report any issue they've had with a scammer to Scamwatch so that we're able to understand the nature and the scale of the problem, because every day there is a new scam.

Our government is not naive in thinking that the register will provide a silver bullet against all future SMS impersonation scams. We know, as I mentioned before, that scammers will invariably change tactics and use new methods to contact and ensnare would-be victims. That's why the bill has in-built provisions to allow us to respond quickly. The bill provides for the Minister for Communications to make determinations in the future, by way of legislative instrument, to respond to a changing scam landscape. That's what we're dealing with—a scam landscape. This will allow the minister to determine future communications services other than SMS and MMS which may use sender identifications registered in the future; anything other than letters, symbols and numbers which may be included in sender identification in the future; and relevant information additional to accepted sender identifications that should be kept on the register in the future.

The bill also provides the ACMA with the ability to make determinations by legislative instruments. The legislative instruments that the ACMA will make will set up further requirements for access to the register and its administration and operation, and this will need to be in place before the register commences operation. These instruments can be amended in response to scammers changing tactics—again, in order for us to do what we can as a government to stay one step ahead of these scammers.

As the speeches so far in this chamber have indicated, there is an enormous public interest in this legislation and taking action against scammers. The development of this bill has been informed by two rounds of stakeholder and public consultation. The ACMA initially undertook consultation in February 2023 with key stakeholders, including telco providers, government agencies, merchants and consumer organisations, to examine support for the establishment of a register, and in February and March this year there was broad public consultation seeking feedback on the nature of the register to be adopted in Australia and whether it should be mandatory or voluntary. It is expected that the ACMA will undertake further targeted consultation on the draft legislative instruments required to settle the detail of the register's processes.

We're doing a lot to combat scamming. It's really important for our communities, and this is really good public policy. Through our Fighting Scams Initiative measure, our government has committed $67.5 million over four years, from 2024-25 onwards, to combat scams and protect Australians from financial harms. This funding is supporting things like the introduction of mandatory industry codes to combat scams, the ACMA's work in enforcing compliance among telco industry operators through the antiscams code, and a campaign by the National Anti-Scam Centre on helping consumers protect themselves from scams. As I say, this is something that is enormously important to the people in my electorate of Chisholm and, I suspect, electorates right across the country.

The funding provided in the May budget, that I just mentioned, is in addition to the $86.5 million over four years provided in last year's budget, which included the funding to establish the National Anti-Scam Centre within the ACCC from July last year. It's great to see that the National Anti-Scam Centre and the work they do is having some positive results. But there's of course more to do, hence the legislation before the House now.

I'm really proud to be part of a government taking action. I will continue to work with my community to educate people about what they can do to protect themselves from scams. Not only that; I will communicate to my electorate the very important steps our government is taking so we can remain one step ahead of these nefarious operators and make sure our communities are safe from being targeted and losing access to their personal information and, in many cases, money.

Dai Le (Fowler, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We've just heard from members in this Chamber about the extent to which Australians are increasingly facing and confronted with spam and scams. It's no surprise, as we're spending so much more of our time on our mobile phones and devices. Technology is wonderful in one way but a curse in another.

Many in this Chamber are probably exasperated with the number of times our mobile phones ring and a strange number will appear, and we don't even know what that number is. We are always receiving text messages that look like they could legitimately be from organisations such as tolls or Australia Post—and, if you have untrained eyes, you could actually click the link. As the member for New England said previously, do not click on any links you receive on your mobile phones or in emails. Unfortunately, this is such a norm in our society these days, with the scammers becoming more and more sophisticated in their craft and with the technology available for everybody to use.

I know for a fact that many of my constituents are concerned by the regular unwanted and unsolicited spam and scams. Some have unfortunately fallen for these scams, as the text messages seem legitimate in their eyes. My office in Fowler has received emails and calls from constituents who have been victims of these types of scams and cybercrime. One fell victim to a cryptocurrency scheme, with scammers convincing them to verify their transactions and identity through a 'bank' which clearly does not exist. This all occurred via text message, and he lost $59,000. As you can see, these are very real experiences of cybercrime or scams which could be prevented.

My understanding is that this bill, the Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024, will set up a SMS sender ID registry—which I believe could help tackle cybercrime, namely prevention. Once criminals have access to our private information or steal our digital identity, it's very difficult to either recover our privacy or prosecute the offenders. Often these criminals come from outside Australia. My office recently met with the Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre, or JPC3, to seek information on what advice to give to Fowler residents. I'm in awe of their work, of what they do in investigating and analysing cybercrime on a national and international scale. It's incredible that their work has led to the prosecution of cybercriminals in other countries through interagency work. A vital part of the work is in passing on the lessons learned through their investigations to Australians, to inform and prevent these crimes from happening in the first place. Australians are urged to look at the website maintained for this purpose, cyber.gov.au. The information on this site could prevent a world of pain as well as help those who have been victims of these criminals.

The member for Chisholm mentioned The Little Black Book of Scams. My office has also ordered this book that is available for our community. One of the things I asked is for this book to also be in languages. We're hoping that there'll be availability in languages because, as we know, communities such as Fowler, where 70 per cent of our population are from non-English-speaking backgrounds, are often very vulnerable to scams. This kind of material in languages would be very, very helpful.

It is important to remember that these criminal individuals and networks are exploiting us. It's especially hard for elderly Australians or for Australians with intellectual disability to spot scam messages. And, as I mentioned, it's hard for new Australians whose first language is not English, like many in my electorate of Fowler. They're also very vulnerable to these messages. That is not only because of a language barrier but because government use of SMS technology might be new to them.

Falling for these scams often makes people feel stupid or humiliated, and they're not. This bill places the emphasis where it should be—not on the victim but on making it more difficult for the criminal. I acknowledge that there was industry-wide consultation ahead of writing this bill. I also welcome the flexibility that the bill affords in responding to developing technologies, as we know that these can change rapidly.

The cost of establishing and maintaining the register is about $10.9 million over four years, with ongoing costs of around $2.2 million per year thereafter. It sounds like a lot of money, but, in the context of the $3.1 billion that the ACCC reported being stolen through scams in 2022, I believe this investment will help protect our Australian public.

The work of the JPC3 and other law enforcement programs saw a reduction in SMS scams by 13.1 per cent in 2023, according to the ACCC. I welcome this news, and, in supporting this bill, my hope is that it will help to reduce SMS scams that much further.

As Australians we've taken up the convenience of accessing our banking, contacting government departments, doing our shopping and making daily transactions using our mobile phones. With AI technology now widely adopted, we must also be on alert when using such technology. It can certainly assist us, but it also hinders us, as there can be deadly weapons in scams. However, we can't surrender the benefits of existing and future technologies to those who would abuse them to steal from us.

For us here in the chamber and for those who are well educated and well informed, have access to technology and information and have English as their first language, I think being a victim of scams is probably less likely than it is for those that are from vulnerable communities. So, while I really support this bill, I call on the government to ensure that, for the vulnerable people in our communities—in communities like Fowler where English is a second language—much more is done to ensure that they are protected from the spams and scams.

That's not to mention that there are obviously increasing spam messages on social media as well. Social media is another aspect that this bill is probably not going to delve into, but I have no doubt that many small businesses who are using social media platforms to do business are constantly receiving so many spam messages that it's interrupting the transaction of their daily business. Something has to be done to assist the many small businesses that are relying not just on the social media platforms but also on their mobile phones for transactions. We must not forget the vulnerable in our communities and the small businesses in our communities that are very much vulnerable to the scams.

As we continue to make interaction with government and other important agencies and businesses easier and more effective, we must put in safeguards to protect Australians. This bill is a good step in achieving that protection, so I will definitely be supporting it.

Jerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One afternoon I found myself listening to Ben Fordham's podcast on 2GB, where I heard the story of Paul Trefry. Paul is a small business owner who received a text message from ANZ informing him that his business account had been compromised. The message offered him two choices: cancel his credit card or transfer money to a new account. Paul chose the latter and transferred $130,000 to a bank account. The problem was that the message was not from ANZ. His phone said it was from ANZ, but it was from scammers, and the bank account wasn't his either. Paul lost $130,000. For any business, let alone a small business, that is a significant amount. This is not just Paul's story; it's the story of many Australians who have fallen victim to similar scams. Since raising this issue in the House Economics Committee last year, I have heard countless heartbreaking accounts of people being swindled out of their life savings. Their stories have taught me that anyone, regardless of age or background or education, can be deceived by these sophisticated criminals.

When the government came to office, Australians were losing over $3 billion a year to scams. This is a staggering figure, and what's more alarming is that the amount lost to scams has doubled each year from 2019 to 2022. Online, text message, phone and even in-person scams have become primary avenues through which Australians lose their money. These scams strip individuals of their financial resources, they destroy lives, erode trust and undermine confidence in our economic and communication systems. In 2019, the losses to scams were already in the billions but by 2022 the amount had skyrocketed to over $3 billion. Victims of scams often face more than just a financial loss; they experience a deep sense of violation and shame, with many struggling to recover their confidence and rebuild their lives.

As scammers siphon billions from the economy, the ripple effects are felt right across sectors, affecting everything from consumer spending to the stability of small businesses and driving up small business costs as well. When individuals lose their savings, they cut back on spending, which in turn affects businesses that rely on consumer confidence. Small businesses like Paul Trefry's can be especially vulnerable as a single scam can mean the difference between staying afloat or going under and completely ruin a small business's cash flow. Moreover, as we had from the member for Fowler, scams disproportionately affect the most vulnerable in society—the elderly, those with limited digital literacy, those with English as a second language, and those who are already struggling financially. These individuals are often targeted by scammers who exploit their trust and lack of familiarity with digital platforms. The consequences can be devastating.

In response to this growing crisis, our government has taken decisive action. Under our leadership we've established the National Anti-Scam Centre, which has a ready made significant strides in the fight against scams. One of the centre's early successes with the implementation of measures blocked more than 533 million scam texts between July 2022 and March 2024. The establishment of the National Anti-Scam Centre was a key promise we made to the Australian people and one that we've delivered. It's a world-leading initiative, bringing together public and private sector partners to work together to disrupt and stop scammers in their tracks. It's a model of what can be achieved when we work together across sectors and tackle complex problems. We've also bolstered the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's capacity to shutdown fraudulent websites, further cutting off scammers avenues to exploit vulnerable Australians.

The establishment of Australia's first SMS sender ID registry is another crucial component of this strategy, and why I'm commending this bill to the House today. This registry, which is at the heart of the Telecommunication Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024, will play a pivotal role in preventing scammers from impersonating trusted brands through SMS, just like they did with Paul. This approach is comprehensive, combining technology, regulation and public awareness to create a multilayered defence against scams. We recognise that no single measure can eliminate the threat entirely, but by attacking scammers from multiple angles, we can significantly reduce the risk to Australians.

The Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024 requires the Australian Communications and Media Authority to establish and maintain a register of legitimate sender IDs. This means that businesses and entities will be able to register their sender IDs and telcos. They'll be required to check SMS messages that use these IDs. If a sender ID is not registered, the telco could be required to block the message or tag it as fraudulent. This is a significant step forward in our fight against SMS impersonation scams. It will decrease the frequency and impact of these scams on consumers by disrupting the business model of these criminals. Moreover, it will provide legitimate brands and agencies with greater protection against bad actors who seek to exploit their trusted names.

One of the key aspects of this bill is its flexibility. The ACMA can engage a contracted provider to help maintain the register, and the use of the register can be made either voluntary or mandatory, depending on the government's decision later this year. This flexibility ensures that we can adapt to the evolving landscape of scam tactics and stay one step ahead of the scammers. The significance of this register cannot be overstated. By creating this legitimate, centralised database of sender IDs, we will make it much more difficult for scammers to impersonate trusted brands, and the scammers will then go elsewhere.

Let me share another story. It is of Diane and Mon, who were recently targeted by a similar scam. They received a text message from what appeared to be HSBC AU stating that a new login to their mobile app was detected in Perth. The message advised them to call a number if it wasn't them, which they did. The call played HSBC hold music and, when a man answered, he claimed he was from HSBC and that he could help with the issue. Diane and Mon, local constituents in Bennelong, were concerned. They were eager to protect their life savings and they followed the instructions of the impersonator. They provided their username and authenticated this by reading back SMS codes sent to their phone, believing they were dealing with a legitimate bank representative.

Suddenly the call ended abruptly. Sensing something was wrong, they called back and were shocked when the same man answered. It was then that their suspicions were confirmed. The scammer admitted that their money had already been stolen. Devastated, Diane and Mon immediately contacted HSBC and, after being on hold for 20 minutes, they reported the unauthorised transaction and requested that both their accounts and the recipient's HSBC account be frozen. To their dismay, HSBC staff informed them that she could not freeze the recipient's accounts.

Diane and Mon felt abandoned by the very institution they trusted to protect their money. Their experience is a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities in our current systems and of the urgent need for stronger protections—in particular, for banks to do much more to protect their clients' money. Had this SMS ID register been in place, Diane and Mon would never have received that text message purporting to be from HSBC. The scammer would not have been able to spoof HSBC's sender ID and the fraudulent message would likely have been blocked before it even reached their phones. This is the protection that this bill seeks to provide.

This has been happening for too long. It has taken this government to do something about it. One of the main tactics scammers use is to trick people into thinking they are receiving a message from a trusted source. By establishing this register, we can help prevent fraudulent messages reaching Australians in the first place. This bill sets a precedent for how we can protect Australians and their money from other forms of communications and scams in the future. As technology evolves, so too do the methods that these scammers use. It's not about addressing the current threat; it's about building a framework that can be adapted to protect Australians from future scams.

The government is continuing to fight scams. In addition to the measures in this bill, we're committing an extra $67½ million over the next four years to protecting Australians' money. This funding will support the introduction of mandatory industry codes to combat scams, enhance regulators' enforcement capabilities and launch a public campaign to educate Australians on how to identify and protect themselves from scams. The importance of public education cannot be overstated. While technological and regulatory measures are crucial, they must be complemented by efforts to raise awareness amongst the public. That's why, when local MPs do scams forums in their communities, they are so well attended. The government and its agencies simply need to do more to help educate our communities on simple steps they can take to ensure that their money remains safe. Scammers often rely on the ignorance of their victims—people who may not be aware of the latest methods or who may not know how to authenticate the message that they've received from a website, through social media or by email. By educating the public we can empower Australians to protect themselves and reduce the impact of scams.

Importantly, too, we're working on establishing tough new mandatory codes that will place robust obligations on key sectors, starting with banks, telcos and, of course, the digital platforms that we know carry a lot of scammer messages. These sectors are the most commonly targeted by scammers, and it's essential that they take more responsibility for protecting consumers. In both circumstances I gave you today, Deputy Speaker Wilkie, you could argue that the bank was aware that these methods were being used to scam those people out of their money. The mandatory codes seek to address that and ensure that banks are fine. In some circumstances, banks will need to refund customers when they are aware of the scams that are taking place. These mandatory codes will be a significant step forward in holding banks, social media and telcos accountable for their role in preventing scams. We want to create a safer environment for consumers to transfer money and to protect their life savings.

The stories I've shared today were shared with the authority of the local constituents who contacted me. We need to share these stories because they highlight the urgent need for stronger protection and proactive measures to safeguard Australians from the ever-evolving tactics of scammers. I urge the entire parliament to support this bill and show these scammers that we're taking a stand against criminals who prey on our most vulnerable citizens, and we're sending a message to the world that Australia will no longer be an easy target for their craft.

Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mobile phones have changed the way we live, but not always for the better. As phones moved from the kitchen counter to our pockets we became more accessible, easier to contact and, unfortunately, more accessible by scammers. Last year we saw a 37 per cent increase in SMS scams reported, compared to 2022. This year alone we've, tragically, seen almost $6 million lost in SMS scams. Of course, not all scam losses are reported, so the real cost is far greater. But what is crystal clear is that scammers are exploiting the digitisation of our economy. The Albanese government recognises this and is acting. We understand that urgent action is needed, and that is what this bill is all about.

The Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024 will require the Australian Communications and Media Authority to establish and maintain an SMS sender ID register. This register will be used to verify senders like myGov, AusPost and, importantly for Victorians, toll providers. It will help protect Australians from sophisticated scams which target our most vulnerable.

It is hard to imagine an Australian who has not received a scam text message purporting to be from a bank or a toll road operator. I've received them myself, and I hear from so many of my constituents who are fed up with the onslaught of scams targeting their inboxes. That's why, under this bill, telcos would need to confirm whether messages using sender ID were being sent by authorised parties, and, if not, they would be blocked or include a warning. These fraudsters operate domestically and overseas and use sophisticated technologies to trick innocent Australians into divulging sensitive information in order to steal their money or their personal information. The consequent financial losses and stress suffered are immense. At a time when the cost of living is putting pressure on everyday Australians, our government is acting to reduce the anxiety of potential identity theft, financial loss and personal safety.

Earlier this year, the Minister for Financial Services and I hosted a scam awareness forum in Torquay, where we heard firsthand about these challenges from community members. One community member said they'd lost thousands of dollars to a scammer. Many others in the room shared similar stories about friends and loved ones. It was not easy to hear. People have lost their life savings. It does take courage, however, to admit you are a victim of scammers. I understand that people will feel uncomfortable admitting to a packed-out room that they've been scammed, but it's so important that victims reach out for help and share their stories. It's these stories that help inform police and government, at all levels, on how to tackle scammers and put in place support for victims. I am proud that our government has listened and is acting to put in place more supports for scam victims. I am also proud that these measures are having an impact in bringing down losses to scams. Data released by the ACCC in April this year indicated that estimated scam losses went down by 13.1 per cent from 2022 to 2023. However, while losses have decreased and progress is being made, Australians are still losing way too much.

There is no silver bullet to eliminate scam activity. Scammers will adapt and utilise new methods to contact would-be victims, but the creation of this register will complement our anti-scam measures and make it much harder for scammers. Once operational, this register will be used to decrease the frequency and impact of SMS impersonation scams on consumers. It will increase protections for legitimate brands and agencies against bad actors impersonating them, disrupt the business models for SMS impersonation scams, restore public confidence in SMS as a communication channel and ultimately make Australia a harder target for scam activity.

We know the changes arising from the Telecommunications Amendment (SMS Sender ID Register) Bill 2024 can't be put in place overnight, but that's why the bill allows for a deferred commencement date. As part of that, we'll make clear that, if the provisions do not commence within six months, they will commence on the day after the day ending that period. This recognises that the ACMA will require time to finalise technical and operational aspects of the register, which are likely to be complex. According to this bill, it provides that the ACMA must establish the register as soon as is practicable. The bill defines what is meant by a 'sender identification' and will also provide the Minister for Communications with the authority to determine other communication services which employ sender identifications that may be registered in the future. The essential elements for applications, refusal of applications, prevention of impersonation of sender identifications and removal of entries from the register are explicitly embedded in the bill. However, new powers will be conferred on the ACMA to make determinations. These will set out further requirements for access to the register and its administration and operation.

This is important work and will complement the progress our government has made in combating scams. Our government has already delivered an additional $67.5 million in the 2024-25 budget as part of our second tranche of reforms to crack down on scammers. The success of our phase 1 measures reinforces our resolve to take on these criminals. The budget funding supports the introduction of mandatory industry codes and increased use of the secure e-invoicing network. Under our government, industry codes will start with banks, telcos, social media, digital messaging and search advertising services, and we will require these groups to have measures in place to prevent, detect, disrupt, respond to and report scams. This will be complemented by strong regulator enforcement action, penalties for noncompliance and victim compensation where wrongdoing occurs. The government will also provide regulators with $37.3 million to administer and enforce the mandatory industry codes. This includes $12.4 million for the Australian Communications and Media Authority over four years to oversee the review and improvement of its existing scam call and SMS code for telcos and boost reinforcement action to prevent, detect and disrupt scams. The budget also provides $180 million for the ATO to identify and stop fraudsters, which will include IT system upgrades to block attempts to break into taxpayer accounts.

There's clear evidence that our scam crackdown is working, but losses remain far too high. As our economy continues rapidly down the path of digitisation, we can expect this pace of change to accelerate. The profound impact of this change has a direct bearing on the expectations of government and business. The first responsibility of government is to keep its people secure. The responsibility of business is to abide by the laws of the country in which they operate. Globalisation and its impact on society, culture and the economy challenges the way government and businesses approach these responsibilities, but it does not displace them. Time and distance have become compressed. Information is transmitted around the world through digital platforms and SMS in an instant. Goods are purchased online in a global marketplace before being delivered rapidly to your door—even in the smallest regional towns. Retail transactions and finance are now overwhelmingly digital. All of this is facilitated by enormous amounts of personal data being stored and shared throughout the economy. The pandemic only accelerated this trend, and that's why we are implementing an ambitious anti-scam agenda. It's why we continue to introduce strategies that protect people's hard-earned savings and make it harder for scammers to operate.

We want to be a world leader when it comes to scam prevention. This bill will go a long way towards making that a reality and saving many people from losing their life savings.

Louise Miller-Frost (Boothby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

More and more Australians are being hit by scams. In 2023, Australians lost $2.7 billion to scams. We made over 601,000 scam reports, an 18.5 per cent increase on 2022. This is despite the ACMA blocking more than 533 million scam texts and 1.9 million scam calls between July 2022 and March 2024. Investment scams caused the most harm, taking $1.3 billion. Remote access scams took $256 million. While we may laugh about some of the more obvious scams going around, they work, otherwise they wouldn't still happen. These are not some random efforts. These are highly targeted and coordinated efforts.

Some years ago, when I was doing some training on cybersecurity, I heard about a scam group operating out of Europe that had been broken up. The leads consisted of a couple of PhDs in computing and four PhDs in psychology, because we, humans, are the weak link and the scammers know that social engineering—conning us and convincing us to click on the blue link—is the key to accessing our bank accounts, accessing our credit cards, accessing our identity information, accessing our confidential information and accessing our computers at home and at work.

Increasingly I hear from people in Boothby about how convincing these scams are. They mimic banks. They mimic government departments, utility companies and retailers. They look convincing and, given so much of our lives are conducted electronically via SMS, email and online access, we are all vulnerable. Unfortunately, people receiving these SMS impersonation scams are often deceived into responding or taking action suggested by these text messages. One click is all it takes when you're tired or stressed, or when you're expecting a message and something comes through at just the wrong time and looks convincing, and these scammers make it their business to look convincing. That one click can put you into a world of pain, with the loss of life savings, identity documents, and confidence. But playing whack-a-mole with scammers is a losing game. As fast as one number is blocked, they come through on another. There has to be a better way, a way that can give Australians confidence that when they get a text it is really from a known entity—or they can ignore it, or block and delete.

As part of a comprehensive range of measures the Albanese Labor government is putting in place to combat scammers—

Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Boothby will resume her seat. It being 6.30 pm, the debate is interrupted in accordance with standing order 192B. The debate is adjourned, and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting. The member for Boothby will have leave to continue speaking when the debate is resumed on a future day.