Young Australians have been the worst-hit demographic as financial losses caused by job and employment scams skyrocketed by a staggering 259.4% to $9.6 million in 2022, says Scamwatch.
The most damaging scams were perpetrated via social media, where unsuspecting victims were promised easy money while working from home, purportedly for legitimate companies offering 'task-based’ work requiring simple data entry or validation via an app or website.
Surprisingly, the average loss incurred by victims was an astounding $14,963, with a median loss of $3,150 with the mode of payment to scammers primarily being in cryptocurrency.
Australian authorities have received more than 500,000 reports of scams in 2022, resulting in reported losses of more than$3.1 billion, according to a report compiled by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/1013420/employment-scams-steal-9-6-million-in-2022-primarily-targeting-young-australians-scamwatch-1013420.html
