Australia could soon have a blocking list for scammers who impersonate brands and government services.
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The government has requested the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigate the implementation of a SMS sender ID register, which has been successful in deterring scammers in other countries.
Sender ID scams trick people into thinking they are receiving legitimate texts from businesses or government agencies such as AusPost or MyGov.
SMS sender ID registries can effectively act as a blocking list to stop bad actors from impersonating trusted brands.
Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland and Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones asked ACMA to investigate different register models and provide advice to the government on the most appropriate model for the Australian market.
"Strong compliance and enforcement is an important part of the government's comprehensive approach to scams," Ms Rowland said in a statement.
"Fraudsters cause financial and immeasurable emotional and mental stress by impersonating legitimate organisations every day, and we thank the ACMA for its important work to help protect Australians."
Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones MP said protecting consumers from scams is a top priority for the government.
"That's why we took a comprehensive policy to the election, including a new National Anti-Scams Centre, tougher codes and a dedicated minister to deal with these issues," he said.
"Australians are losing around $4 billion a year to online fraudsters, enough is enough."
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The request comes comes after the ACMA took action over the first breach of new anti-SMS scam rules by a telecommunications company last week.
The rules, backed by the Albanese government, require all telecommunications providers to identify, trace and block SMS scams.
They also require providers to publish information to assist their customers to proactively manage and report SMS scams, to share information about scam messages with other mobile providers and report identified scams to authorities.
Ninety million SMSes have been blocked by Australian telcos since the rules were introduced in July 2022.
An ACMA investigation has found telco Modica had allowed customers to send SMSes using text-based sender IDs, or a name, without properly checking to ensure they weren't being used to scam Australians.
Modica Group Limited was ordered to comply with the new rules, and may face stronger action including Federal Court proceedings if future breaches occur.
If you think you've been scammed, contact your bank and phone company immediately and report it to Scamwatch. Contact IDCARE if you've had personal details stolen.
For information on how to spot - and stop - phone scams, visit acma.gov.au/scams.