Five criminal charges dropped against ATO whistleblower Richard Boyle – 14 March 2025
Criminal charges against Richard Boyle, who blew the whistle on aggressive tax collection practices, have been dropped, including three counts of attempting to disclose protected information and two counts of attempting to divulge or communicate a tax file number. But three other charges of attempting to disclose protected information remain.
Rideshare driver to pay back over $125,000 after compensation scheme fraud – 14 March 2025
An individual from Clayton South in Victoria has been ordered to pay back more than $125,000 after defrauding the state’s workers’ compensation system. Abid Khan, was caught receiving weekly compensation and superannuation payments despite already working as a rideshare driver.
Australia’s results improve in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index – 18 March 2025
Australia scored 77 out of 100 in Transparency International’s recently released Corruption Perceptions Index (2024), representing an improved score from prior years, and re-entering the top 10 for the first time in almost a decade. Commentators have attributed the improvement to the Federal Government’s integrity reforms over the last few years, including new foreign bribery and anti-money laundering laws.
NT Police Commissioner Michael Murphy officially sacked by government after ICAC scandal – 18 March 2025
Mr Murphy was stood down by the government on March 8, just over a week after Ms Finocchiaro was first made aware of Independent Commissioner Against Corruption (ICAC) findings against him. ICAC found in early 2024 Mr Murphy engaged in “improper conduct” by helping his good friend get a high-placed job in the police force, and sitting on the panel that hired him.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-18/nt-michael-murphy-officially-sacked/105068762
AI squeezes the juice from data to stop scams – 18 March 2025
AI technology is being adopted at a rapid rate by local banks to combat fraud, according to the AFR Intelligence white paper, Second generation technology: Banking on the next transformation, commissioned by NextGen. The report’s findings show more than three-quarters (83 per cent) of Australian banking executives say they are implementing AI in their operations, making the financial services sector an Australian AI leader.
Court tells Meta to unlock scam data in win for Twiggy on crypto ads – 19 March 2025
A US judge has ordered tech giant Meta to hand over details about how fraudsters use its platform after the company revealed it has hosted 230,000 scam ads featuring billionaire Andrew Forrest’s image since 2019. The revelations emerged during a hearing in California, as part of Forrest’s long-running legal battle over scam cryptocurrency advertisements, featuring the mining magnate published on Meta’s platforms, which have cost Australians millions of dollars.
Police investigator into murder of Glenn Walewicz details how they cracked the case in first public interview – 19 March 2025
For the first time, the lead investigator on the death of Glenn Walewicz has detailed how police found those responsible. 48-year-old Glenn Walewicz died in mid-June after he was shot outside his Canberra home. It was nearly a year before the mastermind was found. This was due to persistence and some help from modern technology.
‘Flash’ messages, fake websites, and ex-Cyclone Alfred: Scammers’ latest tricks – 20 March 2025
According to the National Anti-Scam Centre’s latest Targeting Scams report, scam losses reported to key organisations hit $2 billion in 2024. Scammers are becoming more creative and finding new ways to take advantage of unsuspecting Australians. From caller ID spoofing to severe weather recovery scams and fake websites, the article lists the latest scams to watch out for right now.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/australia-latest-scams-warning/41gk5kark
Australian victims warned over rising cryptocurrency exchange impersonation scams – 20 March 2025
The National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC), in partnership with the AFP-led Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre (JPC3), has reached out to more than 130 potential victims alerting them to the impersonation scam targeting the Binance cryptocurrency exchange. They were identified through messages found on an end-to-end encryption platform. Targets were allegedly contacted via SMS and encrypted messaging platforms by someone claiming to be a Binance representative who said their cryptocurrency accounts had been breached.
ICAC probe clears police and solicitors over Colleen Gwynne charges – 20 March 2025
The NT’s corruption watchdog investigated allegations that senior police and solicitors abused their power by maliciously pursuing a criminal case against Colleen Gwynne.
The ICAC delegate ultimately determined the “evidence does not support the making of any finding of improper conduct”. The NT Attorney-General has sought a briefing from her department on the report, which the ICAC finalised nearly a year ago.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-20/colleen-gwynne-icac-report-police-investigation/105078074
Conman Peter Foster gets $170k from cops … and wants more – 21 March 2025
NSW Police have been ordered to pay Australia’s greatest conman $170,000 in legal costs after his spectacular arrest on a Queensland beach exposed decades of improper practices.
https://apple.news/AV1ENBQ3jRR628gm1jtTWKw
https://www.2gb.com/quite-ironic-notorious-conman-scores-170k-legal-win/
NSW upper house committee to launch inquiry into troubled childcare sector – 21 March 2025
A parliamentary inquiry has been called into the troubled childcare sector following a landmark ABC investigation into serious safety breaches in the industry. The NSW upper house committee on education met and formally backed an inquiry. Submissions will remain open until the end of May, with public hearings scheduled for August, September and October in Sydney and regional NSW
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-21/nsw-to-launch-inquiry-into-childcare-sector/105078484
