The new year is a great time to review your online security to keep yourself cyber safe.
Scams and cyber threats are a challenge all of us face, and new scams emerge all the time. Criminals use these scams to trick you into revealing your personal details.
Most Australians have a myGov account. It’s the front door to a wide range of government services, with an average of over 780,000 sign ins each day. It’s where we claim payments, lodge our tax returns, and access Medicare.
There are some simple things you can do to help protect your myGov account.
Here are my top five tips:
- Your sign in details are the first line of defence to your myGov account – don’t share them with anyone. I’d also recommend signing in to myGov using your myGov username rather than your email or phone number. You can change this in your account settings.
- Use a strong, unique password or passphrase that isn’t used anywhere else – the longer it is the stronger it is.
- Be scam aware – myGov won’t send you a text message or email with a hyperlink asking you to sign in or share personal information.
- To use myGov, always type my.gov.au into your internet browser or download and use the official myGov app.
- To increase the security on your myGov account, choose to get a code by SMS or use the myGov Code Generator app as your second sign in option.
What to watch for
Here are some other things to watch for that might point to a possible scam.
Is the message unexpected? Does it have a deadline or sense of urgency? Does it tell you to click on a link or call a number you don’t recognise, or tell you there’s a problem with your payment? Does it say you need to do something in order to get something?
These are all clues. Take a moment to stop, and ask yourself, ‘Do I trust this message?’
If you’ve clicked on a suspicious link or given your personal information to a scammer, and you’re worried someone may try to access your myGov account, call our Scams and Identity Theft Helpdesk on 1800 941 126.
The helpdesk can check your records for suspicious activity and add security measures to prevent unauthorised access.
We can also refer you to IDCARE, which provides a range of support for people affected by scams and identity theft.
Services Australia takes cybersecurity very seriously and has robust protections in place on its systems, including myGov.
This includes monitoring and fraud detection systems to protect customers. We review and take down all fake myGov scams sites that get reported to REPORTASCAM@servicesaustralia.gov.au
How do you keep your myGov account safe? Will you take on board the above suggestions? Why not share your opinion in the comments section below?
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