11 stories this week:

 

Unfair practices law needed to improve consumer protection, says outgoing ACCC chair Rod Sims – 4 March 2022
Ex ACCC chair, Rod Sims has said Australia needs a law banning “unfair practices”. He said such a law could help protect consumers from having their own data used against them. He mentioned practices such as false scarcity reminders such as low-stock warnings, false sales countdown timers, targeted advertising utilising consumers’ own data to exploit their individual characteristics, pre-selected add-ons and design interfaces that discourage unsubscribing.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-04/unfair-practices-law-needed-to-improve-consumer-protection-sims/100880334

NSW man arrested after 2 women lost $20k – 11 March 2022
A western Sydney man has been arrested after two women were defrauded and lost savings totalling almost $20,000. NSW Police will allege in court, the man posed as an employee of a financial institution and called the women, telling them their accounts had been hacked. He then allegedly when to their homes before taking their money.

https://7news.com.au/politics/law-and-order/nsw-man-arrested-after-2-women-lost-20k-c-6013279?msclkid=4940daf0a66711ec90bb9ee8b204eabc

Scamwatch: It can be hard to say no to a cute puppy but don’t rush in and fall for a scam – 11 March 2022
Australian Community Media has compiled a list of current scams identified on sites such as scamwatch.gov.au, cyber.gov.au and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s website, dedicated to informing people about fraudulent and dishonest activities. This article summarises what to look out for.

https://www.northernbeachesreview.com.au/story/7654748/buying-or-adopting-pets-online-watch-out-for-red-flags/

Crown v Shannon: bigwigs off the hook, small fish fried – 14 March 2022
Michael West reports on the world of deluxe double standards. For example, ASIC would NOT be pursuing Crown directors for breaching their duties. Yet ASIC is still pursuing the bank victims advocate, Geoff Shannon of the website Unhappy Banking, even trying to drag him off his hospital bed after spinal surgery to force him to face charges in another state.

https://www.michaelwest.com.au/crown-v-shannon-bigwigs-off-the-hook-small-fish-fried/

Former Wirecard chief executive charged with fraud – 14 March 2022
Wirecard’s former chief executive Markus Braun has been formally charged by Munich public prosecutors with fraud, breach of trust and accounting manipulation after a 21-month criminal investigation into the collapse of the German payments group.

https://www.ft.com/content/c0bcaaab-546a-4e37-861e-2a29f28e1998

Fake heiress Anna Sorokin makes new bid to fight deportation – 15 March 2022
Anna Sorokin, the convicted swindler who claimed to be a German heiress to finance a posh lifestyle in New York, is making a new bid to fight deportation. She scammed New York’s elite, hotels and banks out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-16/anna-sorokin-attempts-to-fight-deportation/100914092

Mount Gambier MP Troy Bell to face trial on theft charges after losing High Court appeal – 15 March 2022
South Australian Independent MP Troy Bell will face trial in October accused of misappropriating public funds, after he lost his High Court bid to stop the prosecution.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-15/sa-troy-bell-high-court-loses-appeal-bid/100911124

Accidentally paid a fraudulent invoice? Your legal position is murky – 15 March 2022
If you have accidentally paid a fraudulent invoice, are you liable to pay an invoice a second time, or is the supplier liable for failing to have adequate cyber security? The answers to this question will depend on the precise circumstances that occurred surrounding the fraudulent payments. Article reviews basic principles that have been considered.

https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=b88b8b74-ecbd-4236-93f9-0dd48d3d8883

Investigation after images of Sydney home altered to include ”expansion joints’ that were never there – 15 March 2022
NSW Fair Trading is investigating allegations that builder Metricon photo shopped images of a Sydney family’s dream home, to include expansion joints” that were, in fact, not there.

https://australiannewsonline.com.au/2022/03/14/investigation-after-images-of-sydney-home-altered-to-include-expansion-joints-that-were-never-there/?msclkid=c8da257ca65911ec86f4fc17f05b27b1

ASIC announces new whistleblower review – 16 March 2022
The corporate regulator is preparing to review whistleblower programs from a sample of companies. The upcoming review will assess how selected companies handle whistleblower disclosures, how they use the information from disclosures to address issues or change their operations, and the level of board and executive oversight of the program.

https://www.ifa.com.au/news/30901-asic-announces-new-whistleblower-review

Mastercard says real-time payments increase risk of fraud – 16 March 2022
Mastercard is developing a new service for banks that will add card-like consumer protections to transactions sent over the real-time payment system that competes with its network.

https://www.afr.com/companies/financial-services/mastercard-says-real-time-payments-increase-risk-of-fraud-20220314-p5a4h8

(Digital access to AFR required to read article.)

Melissa Caddick’s husband Anthony Koletti pens scathing letter, claiming ASIC ‘dehumanised’ his wife – 17 March 2022
Melissa Caddick’s husband says ASIC removed CCTV cameras from their Sydney home, so they will never know if his wife was murdered. He claims his wife was ‘dehumanised’ in her home by ASIC investigators.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-17/melissa-caddick-husband-claims-asic-removed-cctc-from-home/100918388

Mr Flamboyant’s fraud charge begs the question: How can suppliers ensure they’re paid? – 17 March 2022
Article looks at what can suppliers do to ensure they do not find themselves at the mercy of an alleged fraudster who does not pay for good and services rendered.

https://www.smartcompany.com.au/finance/fraud/mr-flamboyants-fraud-suppliers-ensure-theyre-paid/