Beware $1.7m OZ Skype Scam

A new scam using VoIP Skype service is conning Australians out of millions, NSW Minister for Fair Trading has warned. The elaborate scam, which involves offshore telemarketers posing as reps from a fake organisation called Australian Electricity Commission, who are pushing energy saving devices and threatening to cut off householder power within 3 days, if a purchase is not forthcoming. ****The ‘energy saving’ device promises to save 40 percent on bills. 8000 of the devices are already believed to have been sold. The phone calls are conducted via internet calling service Skype and recipients are told they were ‘selected’ to have the device installed and will be reimbursed the $219 asking fee, according to AAP. NSW Fair Trading Minister, Anthony Roberts, says the fraudsters have conned a phenomenal $1.7 million out of Australians, so far. The scam is thought to have started out in Melbourne.