Media release

From: Queensland University of Technology (QUT)

Australians lost A$2 billion-plus to scams in 2021, more than double that of 2020 according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s annual Targeting Scams report. The figure is expected to explode again this year and two events at QUT during National Scams Awareness Week (7-11 November) focus on cyber security and how to spot a scam.

Associate Professor Cassandra Cross, Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching) and a member of the QUT Centre for Justice, will launch new research on a project – The role of financial literacy and fraud awareness in strengthening self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs).

Based on research conducted with Professor Anup Basu from the school of economics and finance, and QUT Centre for Justice senior research assistant Lukas Carey, its main findings are described by Dr Cross as disturbing. It recommends people be given the ability to self-administer a financial literacy test to increase awareness of their own financial abilities before establishing a SMSF.

“Fraudsters coerce and persuade victims to send money taken from savings accounts, lines of credit, bank loans and from family or friends. We are also seeing an increasing number of people being duped into withdrawing money from their self-managed super funds,” Dr Cross said.

“As of June 30, 2021, there were almost 598,000 SMSFs in Australia, held by 1.115 million members and it has been an upward trend in recent years. SMSFs in Australia are worth $822 billion in total assets so present rich pickings for offenders.

“We conducted an online survey with 806 SMSF members and found more than half of respondents demonstrated a low level of financial literacy, while almost half of them demonstrated a low level of fraud awareness.

“Even more worrying, one third had made an early withdrawal from their SMSF. One of our recommendations is that an appropriate intervention should be developed to prompt SMSF holders to reconsider if they wish to withdraw funds prematurely.”

Dr Cross will report on the findings and then moderate a panel discussion on how they can help improve the ability of SMSF holders to protect themselves against fraud into the future. Panellists include Jayde Richmond, Director, Consumer Strategies and Engagement, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

The free event is in the Gardens Theatre Foyer, X Block, QUT Gardens Point campus from 5pm-7pm and is offered in person or via a webinar. Register here: Project Launch - Financial Literacy and Fraud Awareness Tickets, Wed 09/11/2022 at 5:00 pm | Eventbrite

Also on at Gardens Point that night is the Colin Brian Governance Fellowship Future Boards Event – Cyber Security and Other Threats to Modern Governance.

Starting at 6pm in the QUT Executive Education Centre, the free, two-hour session will feature industry leaders in IT governance and cyber security sharing their experiences and perspectives.

As cyber-security threats and hacking events dominate the news, the speakers will explore the risks to organisations arising from rapid technological advancement and highlight the role of sound governance and stewardship in steering organisations through turbulent times.

QUT researchers will also present leading-edge developments in effective governance practice.

QUT speakers and panellists include Dr Natalie Elms, current Colin Brain Fellow, and a lecturer with the Faculty of Business and Law, and Associate Professor Leonie Simpson, from the school of computer science and a cryptographer with a special interest in information security.

Read The role of financial literacy and fraud awareness in strengthening self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) report online.