General News
8 August, 2025
‘They stole our future’
Scam artists are becoming increasingly sophisticated, making it difficult for people to discern reality from deception.
A local business owner is cautioning the community that anyone can fall victim to these elaborate schemes.
Sanil Sajive, owner of Warracknabeal Newsagency, shared his family's recent experience with the Warracknabeal Herald.
They lost $75,000 from their business and personal accounts after falling prey to an intricate 'survey scam'.
The family believed they had accepted an "innocent job offer" to review products and complete online surveys in exchange for payment.
"For a family running a small business, the idea of earning extra income flexibly was appealing," Sanil said.
"In the beginning, it feels 100 per cent legit.
"They give you tasks, you complete the surveys, and they actually pay you. It might be $100, then $200, then $300.
"They build your trust by sending you real money."
To make the operation seem real, they added the family to group chats filled with "employees" who seem to be doing the same thing and living the best life while still earning profits.
"This is what you call a curated, high-end scamming agency. It's all designed to make you feel safe while they prepare to take your hard-earned money," Sanil said.
As soon as they suspected it could be a scam, Sanil said they "stepped it up".
"They brought in an "expert", a man they presented as a long-term, highly successful client of their company," he said.
"This person contacted us directly with a masterstroke of psychological manipulation.
"He said 'Hey, I'm willing to put in my $20,000 if you can put in another $20,000, and I'll guarantee we can get your money back for you'."
Once the money was sent, Sanil said excuses and new rules started to come into play, with the family trying to get their money back.
"That's where they really get you," he said.
"Your mindset shifts from opportunity to recovery.
"You think, "I know that I've lost it, but let me see if I can deceive these guys and get my money back somehow." It's not going to work.
"We continued believing them until we realised they were going to bleed us dry."
All contact was cut off, but the scammers still had a method of getting extra money out of them by pretending to be an agency that looks into scammers and initiates money recovery.
"This is another big scam; there is absolutely no way to get your money back," Sanil said.
Scammers constantly change their IP addresses, websites and phone numbers, which makes it harder for police to locate them.
"We reached out to the Australian Federal Police, and they did a full, detailed report and confirmed it was a scamming company," Sanil said.
"The police could not help us, and I don't blame them.
"They didn't just take our money; they stole our future and our sense of security."
[CROSS HEAD] Statistics and advice
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) latest report, in 2023 Australians lost $3.1 billion to scams, which averages out to over $8.49 million being lost each day.
People aged 65 and over recorded a high $256 million in reported losses in 2023, falling victim to investment scams, remote access scams and health/medical scams.
Before you hand over any of your hard-earned money, stop, think and check.
Verify independently if organisations such as a bank, phone company or government agency contact you and be wary of the contact methods.
Never grant remote access to scammers, and before making any significant financial decision on an unsolicited offer, talk to a trusted friend, family member or financial advisor.
For more information and resources, visit scamwatch.gov.au.
Scams can be reported on ReportCyber (cyber.gov.au/report) and also on Scamwatch (scamwatch.gov.au).
IDCARE (idcare.org) is Australia's national identity and offers cyber support services for victims.