More and more scammers are creating social media profiles impersonating us and other government agencies.

Scammers will set up accounts to look like Services Australia, myGov, Medicare, Centrelink or even our employees. These accounts will look convincing, but will have little differences in the name or the spelling of the username.

These accounts will often message you saying they can help you, but they’re really trying to steal your information.

How to tell if it’s a scam

We will never ask you to engage via direct message or private chat on social media. These aren’t secure ways to share information.

We won’t ask you to share personal information like your customer reference number (CRN), address, phone number or email address via social media.

We have a list of our verified social media accounts on our website. If the account isn’t on that list, then it isn’t us.

What to do if you spot a fake social media profile

We’re working with social media platforms to ensure these impersonators are stamped out.

If you spot a social media profile pretending to be us, you can report it using the platform’s reporting system.

Remember, it’s important to look for signs that you may be engaging with a scammer. If you identify a scammer, don’t respond.

If you have given someone you don’t know your myGov details, CRN, Medicare information or other personal details you should call the Scams and Identity Theft Helpdesk.

Find out more about scams and identity theft, including how to protect yourself against scams and what to do if a scam has affected you.