Scams in New Zealand are very common and can lead to financial loss and emotional distress for victims.
Many of these victims are in the demographic that SeniorNet serves – yes, you!
The older generation tends to take things they see on their computer at face value and be more trusting of people in general. We may also be hesitant about using and understanding technology, often only engaging because banks, other commercial businesses and government departments are forcing us to deal with them online.
The Current Situation
New research from the Bank of New Zealand highlights the unrelenting onslaught of criminal scammers, with nearly nine in ten New Zealanders (87%) reporting that they’ve been targeted by scammers in the past year.
Key findings from BNZ’s 2024 Scam Savvy survey include:
- 1 in 8 respondents fell victim to a scam in the last 12 months, with 7% losing money
- Government impersonation scams have increased, with 52% of respondents targeted by this type of scam.
- Email remains the most common scam channel, with 34% of scam victims targeted this way.
- Website-based scams have more than doubled, with 22% of scam victims being contacted this way.
- Social media remains a significant channel for scammers, with 22% encountering scams on these platforms.
What can you do proactively?
Even if you think you will spot a scam, the advent of Artificial Intelligence is making it hard, even for the experts, to always be certain. But knowledge is power, so we have assembled links to three web pages from the NZ Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
It is recommended that you go through them all as soon as possible, then come back to this page every three months or so to make sure that you are up-to-date with the latest information on scams.
You might also want to come back here at any time to refresh your memory if you are faced with a possible scam.
Click each of these to view: