The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is urgently warning Australians to be on the lookout for scam activity after some large Australian service providers recently experienced major cyber-attacks, resulting in data breaches for millions of their customers.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) also received over 76,000 cybercrime reports in FY22, an increase of nearly 13% from the previous financial year. This equates to one report every 7 minutes, compared to every 8 minutes last financial year.

Who is at risk of a data breach?

A data breach can affect anyone who has provided personal information to another person or entity, and anyone who has collected and stored it. This includes individuals, small businesses, large organisations, and even government departments. 

What could happen if my data has been breached?

Depending on the data that was stolen, a data breach could expose personal information like your name, date of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses, identification documents and more. 

With this personal information, scammers may be able to:

• access your bank account or open new accounts
• take out loans or other contracts in your name
• purchase expensive goods
• steal your superannuation
• gain access to your government online services
• access your email
• access your social media accounts to scam your family and friends, and more. 

How will I know if my data has been breached?

You may hear directly from an organisation, read it in the news, or learn about data breaches through the ACSC’s Alert Service. Details of publicly-known breaches may also be available which you can access from the ACSC here. 

ACCC’s warning also comes with a simple fact sheet outlining how to avoid scams and protect yourself after a data breach. 

Actions to take include:

• STOP – Don’t give money or personal information to anyone if unsure.
• THINK – Ask yourself could the message or call be fake?
• PROTECT – Act quickly if something feels wrong.

Find out more about what Heartland is doing to maintain cyber security for our customers here.

Information provided is accurate as of 15 February 2023 and may change from time to time.