Australia Post scam message that you need to ignore

Australians are being urged to be on high alert for a new Australia Post text message scam in which scammers impersonate the mail service to steal personal information and money.

The fake text message claims that a package was sent to the wrong address and provides a link to correct the information.

“The package you sent arrived at our warehouse and cannot be shipped due to incorrect address information. Please fill in the exact information again and we will ship it within 24 hours,” it says.

Australia Post warned customers the message should be deleted immediately.

The postal service said it “will never contact anyone via SMS or email asking for personal or financial information or payments.”

They urged those waiting for a parcel to use the AusPost app to receive delivery updates as it “uses push notifications which scammers cannot replicate”.

“We are seeing increased public awareness of cybersecurity, but we encourage customers to remain alert for signs of scams, including a non-Australia Post web address, or an unusual sense of urgency or emails asking you to click in a link,” he said. Australia Post spokesperson said.

The scam method, known as phishing, attempts to trick targets into handing over personal information that can be sold or used to access other accounts.

It’s the most common method used by scammers, with just under $2.5 million lost in more than 18,000 incidents reported to Scamwatch in January and February alone.