INFORMATION NIGHT – PROTECTING YOUR IDENTITY

In the second of a series of information nights with topics of interest to the broader Community the Lions Club presented the topic of Fraud, Identity Theft and Scams

Tremendous support for the event was given by the NSW Police, the ATO, Scam Watch and IDcare with the supply of an array of material on Fraud, Identity Theft and Scams. This included two short videos, one on ‘Protecting your Identity’ and the other on ‘Recovering your Identity’.

Senior Constable Shane Carne from the NSW Police Community Relations Unit provided an in depth overview of the gravity of the problem with some 1.6billion dollars being lost in Australia last year to fraud and scams. Mobile phones and the younger generation will be an ongoing rising problem as is the way thieves find it easier to scam or defraud some older members of the community.

He also highlighted the problems when your identity is stolen and the complexities of recovering it and expunging any fraud perpetrated in your name by the criminal.