A 24/7 reporting channel is just one of the new anti-scamming measures banks are implementing.
The suite of consumer protections will be rolled out this year.
Banks will also now reimburse victims up to $500,000 if they fail to adequately warn and protect consumers.
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Scott Simpson tells Francesca Rudkin telco companies and digital platforms should follow suit.
He says other players in the scam ecosystem need to step up.
LISTEN ABOVE
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Banks will be required to reimburse fraud victims up to
half a million dollars under the new scam protections. The
suite of measures also includes providing a twenty four to
seven scam reporting channel and banks during information on scammers
with each other to help prevent criminal activity. The changes
will be delivered through an update to the Code of
Banking Practice. Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Scott Simpson
(00:20):
joins me. Now, thanks for your time, Scott, good morning.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Good morning Francesco.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Okay, how involved were you in creating these protections.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Well, our government's been urging banks take a greater responsibility
for protecting their customers for some time. So I'm the
government's lead on anti scams as Minister, and it's work
that I and my predecessor have been doing now for
well since this government came to office.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Who is eligible for compensation if a bank fails to
meet these new protection commitments.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Well, bank customers that meet certain criteria. And this is
not a regime that it's going to mean that everybody
body is covered, but it will mean, for instance, that
if you take responsibility for your online transactions, your banking
transactions in a way that is careful, prudent and responsible.
(01:13):
The banks will cover you if they have let you
down as their banking provider if you've been scammed.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
How effective has the confirmation of paye system been already
because that the rollout of that's already been completed. And
I was just making the comment there that you know,
it's not working at the moment because businesses aren't aware
that they need to give the account owner's name and
then a nickname. So every time I do it, it
doesn't match up. Scott.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Ironically, Francesca, every time you use it, it gets better
because it's exactly those sorts of things. So over a
period of time, for instance, if someone wants to send
me some money as Scott Simpson, or maybe my bank
account is s Simpson, that isn't a complete match. But
over time the banks get better at it. Now not
(01:59):
every bank is speed with it completely yet that's part
of the reason why these new initiatives don't come fully
into effect until the end of November. It's in order
to allow banks time to get the processes and the
technology in place to have it up and running completely.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
And to be fair, Scott, that's a user issue, not
necessarily the system issue. It's just us getting used to it,
isn't it. You know? Yeah, yeah, absolutely, Look having a
look at the list of these measures, I mean, banks
are already doing some of these things, aren't they. They're
already sort of you know, shutting down if they see
a dodgy looking transaction and things. So putting these measures
(02:35):
officially in place, is it actually more about allowing customers
to hold banks to account.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Yes, it will hold banks to account. But remember, in
the scam ecosystem, banks aren't the only player. There are
digital platform form providers who are the providers that allow
the scam sometimes to work. There are the telco companies
that allows messages to be sent over their networks. So
(03:04):
I want the other players in the scam ecosystem to
step up in the same way that banks have done.
Thet a role to play as well, and I'm hoping
that we can get a similar set of protocols from
the talco companies in the digital platform providers as well.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
So you're happy with what the banks have come up
with here or would you like them to continue sort
of moving forward in the space.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
Well, this isn't a silver bullet. Scams are very prevalent
scammers are very clever, they're very persistent, they're very energetic.
So this isn't going to stop all scams, but it
is a very big step forward. I'm delighted that the
banks have taken this initiative in conjunction government. It's a
very good step. I want others to do the same
sort of thing, but it just means that people still
(03:49):
have to be careful, they still have to be prudent,
and they still have to be alert and aware of
what they're doing in terms of their banking transactions and
their digital interactions and the interactions they with the telco
companies as well.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Scott, thanks so much for your time this morning. That
was the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. For more
from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, Listen live to news
Talks it'd be from five am weekdays, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
Banks will be required to reimburse fraud victims up to
half a million dollars under the new scam protections. The
suite of measures also includes providing a twenty four to
seven scam reporting channel and banks during information on scammers
with each other to help prevent criminal activity. The changes
will be delivered through an update to the Code of
Banking Practice. Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Scott Simpson
(00:20):
joins me. Now, thanks for your time, Scott, good morning.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Good morning Francesco.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Okay, how involved were you in creating these protections.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Well, our government's been urging banks take a greater responsibility
for protecting their customers for some time. So I'm the
government's lead on anti scams as Minister, and it's work
that I and my predecessor have been doing now for
well since this government came to office.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Who is eligible for compensation if a bank fails to
meet these new protection commitments.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Well, bank customers that meet certain criteria. And this is
not a regime that it's going to mean that everybody
body is covered, but it will mean, for instance, that
if you take responsibility for your online transactions, your banking
transactions in a way that is careful, prudent and responsible.
(01:13):
The banks will cover you if they have let you
down as their banking provider if you've been scammed.
Speaker 1 (01:19):
How effective has the confirmation of paye system been already
because that the rollout of that's already been completed. And
I was just making the comment there that you know,
it's not working at the moment because businesses aren't aware
that they need to give the account owner's name and
then a nickname. So every time I do it, it
doesn't match up. Scott.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Ironically, Francesca, every time you use it, it gets better
because it's exactly those sorts of things. So over a
period of time, for instance, if someone wants to send
me some money as Scott Simpson, or maybe my bank
account is s Simpson, that isn't a complete match. But
over time the banks get better at it. Now not
(01:59):
every bank is speed with it completely yet that's part
of the reason why these new initiatives don't come fully
into effect until the end of November. It's in order
to allow banks time to get the processes and the
technology in place to have it up and running completely.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
And to be fair, Scott, that's a user issue, not
necessarily the system issue. It's just us getting used to it,
isn't it. You know? Yeah, yeah, absolutely, Look having a
look at the list of these measures, I mean, banks
are already doing some of these things, aren't they. They're
already sort of you know, shutting down if they see
a dodgy looking transaction and things. So putting these measures
(02:35):
officially in place, is it actually more about allowing customers
to hold banks to account.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Yes, it will hold banks to account. But remember, in
the scam ecosystem, banks aren't the only player. There are
digital platform form providers who are the providers that allow
the scam sometimes to work. There are the telco companies
that allows messages to be sent over their networks. So
(03:04):
I want the other players in the scam ecosystem to
step up in the same way that banks have done.
Thet a role to play as well, and I'm hoping
that we can get a similar set of protocols from
the talco companies in the digital platform providers as well.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
So you're happy with what the banks have come up
with here or would you like them to continue sort
of moving forward in the space.
Speaker 2 (03:27):
Well, this isn't a silver bullet. Scams are very prevalent
scammers are very clever, they're very persistent, they're very energetic.
So this isn't going to stop all scams, but it
is a very big step forward. I'm delighted that the
banks have taken this initiative in conjunction government. It's a
very good step. I want others to do the same
sort of thing, but it just means that people still
(03:49):
have to be careful, they still have to be prudent,
and they still have to be alert and aware of
what they're doing in terms of their banking transactions and
their digital interactions and the interactions they with the telco
companies as well.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Scott, thanks so much for your time this morning. That
was the Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. For more
from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, Listen live to news
Talks it'd be from five am weekdays, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
Popular Podcasts
40s and Free Agents: NFL Draft Season
Daniel Jeremiah of Move the Sticks and Gregg Rosenthal of NFL Daily join forces to break down every team's needs this offseason.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Bobby Bones Show
Listen to 'The Bobby Bones Show' by downloading the daily full replay.