Fraud and scams

Ever noticed a transaction on your account that seemed out of place? It could be fraudulent, but many unrecognised transactions can be cleared up with a little investigation. Here’s how you can check:

Ask any secondary cardholders if they’ve made a transaction you aren’t aware of.
See if the merchant is legitimate by using the government’s ABN Lookup.
Google the billing name on your statement because lots of businesses trade under a different name. If you know the merchant, the easiest way to dispute a transaction may be to get in touch with them directly. If you know the merchant but can’t contact them, you can submit a transaction dispute with our Dispute Team.

If you still can’t identify the transaction, it may be fraud. Our Fraud Team monitors your cards 24/7 for suspicious activity – and they’ll send you an SMS if they notice anything unusual. Sometimes a transaction that looks legitimate may have been made without your consent. If you think this is the case, call us.

NAB Fraud contact details

telephone banking
	Contact details	Contact hours
Personal banking within Australia	Contact details 13 22 65	Contact hours Mon-Fri, 8am-7pm (AEST/AEDT) Sat-Sun, 9am-6pm (AEST/AEDT)
Business banking within Australia	Contact details 13 10 12	Contact hours Mon-Fri, 8am-7pm (AEST/AEDT) Sat-Sun, 9am-6pm (AEST/AEDT)
Personal and business banking if you're overseas	Contact details +61 3 8641 9121	Contact hours Mon-Fri, 8am-7pm (AEST/AEDT) Sat-Sun, 9am-6pm (AEST/AEDT)
Premium Card holders within Australia	Contact details 1300 730 213	Contact hours 24 hours, 7 days
Premium Card holders if you're overseas	Contact details +61 3 9322 6625	Contact hours 24 hours, 7 days

If your card has been misplaced, lost or stolen, you have a range of options.

Credit Card Assistance

Phishing scams

Criminals use phishing emails, text messages and phone calls to gain personal identity information like login credentials for banking or email accounts. Phishing emails and text messages often have links or attachments that download malicious software onto your device, or ask you to process a payment. These messages may look legitimate, but there are ways to tell if they’re not.

Usually, phishing email or SMS messages:

Appear to come from a know organisation or contact, but may be from a sender you have never met
Aren’t addressed to you individually
Have a link or button to click on, or asks you to hand over personal details, open an attachment or process a transaction.

Usually, in a phishing phone call:

The caller says they are from a bank, a large service provider like Microsoft, the NBN or Telstra, or the ATO.
They may know some of your personal details like your employee number or work address and use it to gain your confidence, or offer to let you speak with their ‘manager’.
They may ask for SMS codes, or get you to process a transaction or download software so that they can remotely access your computer.

What to do if you’re targeted by a phishing scam

If you receive a NAB-branded phishing email message, please report it to phish@nab.com.au
If you get a NAB-branded phishing text message, forward it to 0476 220 003.
If you’ve provided personal or banking details or started a transaction in response to a phishing message, please call us straight away on 13 22 65.

You can see examples of NAB-branded phishing messages at latest security alerts.

Learn more about how to spot scam phone calls.

Investment scams

Australians lose millions to investment scams every year. In these scams, individuals or businesses receive a cold call, and are offered attractive investment returns or professional-sounding business opportunities. Once the investment is made, the victim usually receives no returns.

These scammers are mainly based overseas and often tell victims they only need to invest $1000-$2000 to start seeing returns. Often this escalates into requests for more money. Most victims never see any return and lose their entire investment.

Choose your investments wisely

If a stockbroker or investment manager you don’t know contacts you directly, research the company online, and read reviews before committing.

You should also check their business isn’t on the ASIC list of companies you should not deal with.

Business email compromise and invoice scams

Criminal hackers try to steal business email account credentials, because they’re usually a treasure trove of useful information. When a business’s email account is compromised, criminals can use it to request payments or alter invoice details. For example, they can pretend to be the company CEO and send an urgent request to pay an invoice. In 2018, accidental payments to fraudulently altered bank accounts and invoices cost Australian businesses more than $60 million dollars.

Check when things change

If a business asks you to update their bank account details or pay an invoice to a new account, pick up the phone to verbally confirm the change. Use a known or publicly available phone number.

Learn more about how to spot an invoice scam and how to spot a CEO scam.

Romance and friendship scams

Today, it’s easier than ever to make friends and build relationships online. The down side is criminals have become clever at taking advantage of people looking for love. Scammers may be looking for financial gain, to gather information or to use their new ‘friends’ to help them launder money.

Learn how to help your friends and family date safely online.

Remote access scams

Some phone scammers impersonate a bank, telco or computer company and tell you there’s an issue with your computer, banking or phone. They’ll ask you to download a program that gives them remote access to your computer, so they can ‘fix’ the issue. If you do this, they can access all the information on your computer. You should never give an unsolicited caller access to your computer.

Identity takeover

Identity theft or takeover is when a criminal has enough information about an individual to impersonate them for financial gain or other benefits. Criminals can gather your details by stealing from your letterbox or through phishing scams, data breaches, social engineering, malware or hacking systems. When they have enough information, they can attempt to apply for finance, open bank or mobile accounts, or set up other services in your name.

How to protect your identity

Don’t give out any personal information unsolicited phone calls, text messages or emails
Put a padlock on your letterbox
Check your credit rating from time to time so if someone does an unauthorised credit application you will see it listed on the report and be able to take action with the institution (you can do this at ASIC MoneySmart).
Regularly update the anti-virus software on all your devices - find out how to protect your computer with anti-virus software.

Learn more about how to keep your identity safe online.

Phone porting

Some criminals may try to access your accounts by illegally ‘porting’ your mobile phone number to a new service provider. From there, they can easily access your apps – including mobile banking and email accounts.

Stay sharp

If you get a text message or email from your telco provider about a request that you haven’t made, or your phone goes into SOS mode while other people’s services are still active, call your provider immediately.

Cyber safety tips for you

Protect yourself and your loved ones with these tips and resources to help keep your internet devices secure.

Cyber safety tips for your business

Protect your small to medium sized business with these tips and resources for you, and your employees, to help keep your business and your customers secure online.

If you’ve responded to a suspicious email or text message and provided banking details,
please call NAB on 13 22 65 immediately or visit your local branch.

You can learn more about identifying fraud and scams at:

Run by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). It provides information to consumers and small businesses about how to recognise, avoid and report scams.

Find out more

It is part of the Australian Cyber Security Centre. Stay Smart Online provides topical, relevant and timely information on how home internet users and small businesses can protect themselves from, and reduce the risk of, cyber security threats such as software vulnerabilities, online scams, malicious activities and risky online behaviours.

Find out more

If you’ve been a victim of identity theft, IDCare can help. This dedicated, not-for-profit organisation provides specialised support and guidance for protecting your identity from further theft or misuse. The service is free of charge, and tailored to your individual situation.

Phone: 1300 432 273

Find out more

The Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network (ACORN). This is where you can report fraud and scams to the authorities. The more information the police have about cybercrime, the better chance they have of arresting and prosecuting the criminals responsible.

Find out more

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Fraud and scams