Key Points
- Police are urging vigilance over work-from-home job scams.
- For targeted scams, people from CALD communities accounted for almost 12.7 per cent of reported losses in 2023, according to the ACCC.
- A young mum claims to have conducted checks before participating in a 'job' that cost her more than $200,000.
When Sadhvi* (name changed on request) received a message from a friend inviting her to join a Facebook messenger group for work-from-home jobs, her initial reaction was one of caution.
“I am the kind of person who does not shop online, does not pick up calls from unknown numbers, and thinks twice about spending even $5. It is still a shock and disbelief for me that I fell prey to these scammers,” the young mum, who is of Indian origin, told SBS Punjabi.
Because she was introduced to the group by someone she knew from her community, Sadhvi said she agreed to attend a call by a ‘mentor’ to brief her about a commission-based job reviewing hotels online.
She said a woman who identified herself as Nadia Xavier over the phone provided her with training, though SBS Punjabi could not confirm if this name was a real one.
Sadhvi was also added to groups on the messaging application , where she said many people appeared to share their positive experiences of doing the same job.
I moved ahead with caution. I checked the phone number of the trainer and people in the group on the Truecaller app and they all seemed to be legit.Sadhvi, scam victim
“Every day there were people sharing that they have earned thousands of dollars in the group. This inspired me to think, if they can do it, why can’t I?” she said.
How did the scam work?
Sadhvi said she was asked to book hotels with her own money using an 'internal booking platform' and then write reviews without having stayed at the hotels.
In addition to being reimbursed for all the payments she made, she claims she was promised a commission after every 36 reviews she submitted and a per-hour income.
A screengrab shared by Sadhvi of the website she says she was instructed to use for booking and reviewing hotels. Credit: Supplied
From this experience, she said the job seemed "easy" and a "legit way of earning".
After her training, Sadhvi was asked to 'register' via a link and generate her own crypto-currency account.
"All the payments were made in digital currency including crypto. They told me that it was done to ensure the money is transferred into US dollars," Sadhvi said.
In her police complaint, a copy of which has been obtained by SBS Punjabi, she said, “For (the) first hotel booking, I was asked to pay $500. With every reservation, the amount doubled".
A steadily rising trend
Despite assurances, Sadhvi said the money stopped coming in. She claims to have lost $225,000 in total.
She is not alone in encountering such a scam.
According to Wyndham Crime Investigation Unit detectives in Victoria, dozens of people have fallen victim to commission-based, work-from-home job scams this year, losing more than $1 million in the process.
In just the last three months, police say there has been a significant increase in reports, with 15 victims coming forward, reporting to have lost over $400,000 collectively.
The Unit's Detective Senior Constable Sean Betts said in a media statement: “Never enter an arrangement with a company online where you have to pay money to make money — it’s most likely a scam."
“It’s always best to question 'companies' asking for upfront payments via bank transfer, PayID or cryptocurrency before you hand over any details," Betts said.
In Sadhvi’s case, recruiters posed as World of Hyatt representatives and she received a letter purporting to be from the firm with the signature of their CEO.
A copy of the fake letter Sadhvi received. Personal and sensitive data hidden for security.
Sadhvi said that after she contacted the police, she was told the letter was a fake document not issued by the World of Hyatt.
SBS Punjabi contacted the hotel chain, but did not receive a response before the time of publication.
'Now I am in debt'
After raising complaints with her recruiters about not getting her money back, Sadhvi said she was asked to send payments to help 'unfreeze' her accounts.
These payments were in digital currencies including Bitcoin and not directly to any account.
"I picked up loans from friends to put in money for this as I was told money brings more money. I always thought one more review and it would be sorted, one more payment and it would be sorted. Now, I am in debt,” she said.
The money was for my child’s future ... We can never go back to living the way we used to.Sadhvi, scam victim
Sadhvi refinanced her home to pay her friends back and said it would take years to recover from this financial setback.
CALD communities vulnerable
in Australia, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
Australians are losing millions each year to scams that offer work-from-home opportunities.
Top 10 scam categories in 2023 by highest losses as reported to Scamwatch. Credit: National Anti-Scam Centre
In 2024, reported job scam losses have been trending down but remain high, with $6.4 million lost so far, according to the ACCC.
"Culturally and linguistically diverse communities are disproportionately targeted by scammers," ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said in
Australia's consumer watchdog has issued other than English to make people aware of ongoing scams and ways to detect them.
The found people from CALD communities accounted for almost 12.7 per cent of reported losses in 2023.
They collectively made 14,396 reports, which was an increase of 26.1 per cent from 2022. A total of $60.5 million was reported lost by CALD communities, marking an increase of 6.9 per cent from 2022, according to the ACCC.
How to avoid 'money mule' scams
Recruitment scams often treat people as 'money mules'.
In a response to a query from SBS Punjabi, a spokesperson from Commonwealth Bank Australia said: "If you think you might be facing a ‘money mule’ scam, we encourage you to Stop, Check and Reject."
A in banking terms refers to someone who receives illegally obtained money from another person into their account and then transfers it to another person or account.
"The 'mule' might think they're participating in a job, investment or helping an online friend. They're usually offered commission for receiving and transferring the funds," the bank said.
"In reality, the money they move is acquired through criminal activities such as scams or fraud, and the 'mule' has no idea they've been used as an intermediary."
Click on the audio icon to listen to the full report and interview in Punjabi.
