Overview
- Australia Post says it has logged more than 2,500 Facebook Marketplace scam reports this year and removed about 600 fake websites in the past quarter.
- The scheme begins when a supposed buyer sends a link or QR code to a fake AusPost page built to harvest card numbers, passwords, and bank details.
- Australia Post says it does not process payments for private sales or act as an escrow service and will never ask for passwords or bank details by message.
- The agency urges sellers to use only the official AusPost app or website to track services and to report suspect messages to ScamWatch or Australia Post.
- Officials say scammers have shifted from Gumtree to the larger Facebook Marketplace, which sits within a market where Australians spent $18.9 billion on marketplaces last year.