If it has already happened
The worst moment is the one after.
Most people freeze, then spend the night searching. The first hour is when a bank can still do something — so here are the calls to make, in order, free, whether you're a customer or not.
Money has left
Ring the bank first. Minutes matter.
- Your bank's fraud line — the number on the back of your card. Say the word “fraud” and that you've been scammed, not that you're “worried about a transaction”. A recall is only possible while the money is still moving.
Another bank? Ring the number on your card — never one from the message.
- Then IDCARE for the identity side — free, national, they build the plan. 1800 595 160
- Report it to Scamwatch so the next family gets warned. scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam
- Change the password anywhere it was entered.
Details given, no money yet
Ring IDCARE first. It's fixable.
A licence, passport, Medicare card, myGov login or password was handed over — or someone had remote access to the computer.
- IDCARE — the free national identity and cyber support service. They do exactly this every day and will build a plan for the identity and every account.
Free. Government-funded. Not a sales line.
- Tell the bank what was exposed, so they can watch the account.
- Report it to Scamwatch, so the next family gets warned. scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam
- Change the password anywhere it was entered. If a computer was accessed, turn it off and leave it off until the bank and IDCARE have said so — it may be evidence.
!
“We can recover your money for a fee” is always a second scam. Being scammed once is what puts you on the list. Only your bank can claw a payment back, and IDCARE is free. We do not recover money, and we never take a fee to try.
Where we send people, and why
Identity exposed — IDCARE first. Every reply we send and this page both put IDCARE ahead of the bank, Scamwatch and the police, because the identity side is what they do every day and it's the part a bank can't help with. Money moved — the bank first. Recalls are measured in minutes. We refer people; we don't charge, hand off, or speak for any of these services.
If you already use Is it a scam?
Just type what happened to the same number you forward to — I already paid them $500, what do I do — and the right calls, in the right order, come back in seconds. No form, no keyword. Not set up yet? The free checker gives the same steps.
No blame, ever. These are professional operations built to work on anyone having a busy day, and shame is the thing that stops people ringing in time.