From July 1st, text messages (SMS) sent from sender IDs (the name displayed in the sender section of text messages - Sender ID) that are not officially registered in Australia will be automatically labeled as "unverified".
This marks the official and comprehensive implementation of the "Code of Industry Practice on Combating Spam and Fraud" issued by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to prevent high-tech criminals from impersonating major organizations and brands to scam people.
According to data from ACMA cited by the Vietnam News Agency correspondent in Sydney, in 2026, Australians lost nearly AUD 18 million (USD 11.88 million) due to SMS scams, most commonly fake messages impersonating the Australian Tax Office (ATO) or the federal online public service portal myGov.
However, according to the latest Fraud Target Report from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the number of reported SMS scams has dropped sharply from 77,365 to 29,058 thanks to increased public awareness.
Since the beginning of 2026, the Australian National Anti-Fraud Centre has forwarded lists of over 4,200 suspicious phone numbers and 825 sender identifiers to telecommunications companies for processing, and these companies have proactively blocked over 153 million phishing messages.
Under the new operating mechanism, businesses, charities, or government agencies of all sizes that use the brand name display feature when sending SMS messages must contact their network provider to complete the registration process for a free identifier code on the ACMA system.
To date, over 17,000 sender identities have been successfully recorded. Units that did not register before the July 1st deadline will have their messages automatically moved to a separate folder labeled "unverified" on their customers' phones.
ACMA representative Samantha Yorke advised people to be especially vigilant and absolutely not click on links or provide personal information in response to any messages labeled "unverified".
Cybersecurity experts from Edith Cowan University and the University of Adelaide warn that the tax filing period at the end of the financial year (July 1st to October 31st annually) in Australia is often a peak time for criminal gangs to increase their activity.
Taking advantage of people's anxieties about inflation and the cost of living, fraudsters will use every trick in the book to promise attractive tax refunds.
Experts advise consumers to carefully verify all suspicious payment requests or contacts, or to forward suspicious messages to the fraud reporting service (number 7226) for timely blocking and filtering.
Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/australia-trien-khai-la-chan-moi-chong-tin-nhan-lua-dao-post1121442.vnp
