https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-06-27/superannuation-scam-hostplus-fraud-afca-court-cryptocurrency/103962762

Super scammers defrauded Lee of his retirement savings.
Industry experts are calling for better protections


https://www.hotelmanagement.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Intrust-Super_AYS_H_CMYK-Flat-Blue.jpg

By national consumer affairs reporter Michael Atkin

updated 4h ago


He wanted to invest $10,000 first to see how it performed.

But scammers used the documents he'd provided to fraudulently take the lot.
One phone call could have stopped it
Lee was awarded 30 per cent of what he lost, about $54,000,
leaving him worse off after paying legal fees.


    In short: Lee Braz's entire super, $180,000,
was stolen by scammers who used fraudulent documents to trick his fund.
    He launched a four-year legal battle to get a refund from his super fund, but only got back a third, which didn't cover his legal fees.
    What's next? Industry experts want the federal government to urgently increase security obligations, such as multi-factor authentication and checks on who owns a bank account when rolling over a member's super.

Lee Braz was well into his 50s and knew he had to sort out his super.

Then he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him do just that.

But the call was the start of a nightmare that would see Lee's entire super balance, about $180,000, stolen.

Before going ahead, Lee checked the company's website and saw it was properly registered in Australia.

In sales documents it claimed to have impressive returns using money from self-managed super funds to invest in tech and finance giants like Google and Visa.

Lee sent over his passport to open an account. He wanted to invest $10,000 first to see how it performed.

But scammers used the documents he'd provided to fraudulently take the lot.

The whole Australian compulsory superannuation scheme is a scam.

This poor bastard had only $180,000 after nearly a working lifetime of contributions.

Before the scammers got the residue, the salesmen and managers of the super fund got their cut.

What the hell is going on?

So if a scammer has a copy of your passport details they can take all your super
and the super fund won't even phone you to check if that is really you?

My opinion:
He should have received all of his $180,000 back plus interest
plus legal costs plus a a substantial amount for the stress it caused.

Laugh till you cry wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 2:17pm:

The whole Australian compulsory superannuation scheme is a scam. This poor bastard had only $180,000 after nearly a working lifetime of contributions. Before the scammers got the residue, the salesmen and managers of the super fund got their cut.

The Govt got all the taxes that his payments generated too.
The courts and the lawyers didn't help him - they made money out of it.
It's a scandal.
It could happen to all of us.

When you invest in something, you should check and recheck to see if the company is reliable. I made the mistake of putting $700 towards that Herbalife company. But it turned out to be a big pyramid scheme. The profits you get are little. But, at least the supervisor I had did give me my investment back.

UnSubRocky wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 2:31pm:

When you invest in something, you should check and recheck to see if the company is reliable. I made the mistake of putting $700 towards that Herbalife company. But it turned out to be a big pyramid scheme. The profits you get are little. But, at least the supervisor I had did give me my investment back.

You were lucky to get even one penny back.

From the Marathon Man move:

Dr. Christian Szell -
Even after a lifetime of being taken by friends and enemies alike -
and then, just when you feel you have your possessions sure -
your health begins to fade -
that is of course the ultimate theft.

The government is the biggest scammer of all. Taxpayers lose more than $1000 per person per year to the cost of administrating the superannuation scheme. "Industry Experts" are calling for more protection because they are the ones that end up with the money. You can now get budget self-managed super for just over $1000 per year in additional administration costs (compared to if you were managing the same amount of money outside of super). These "experts" don't want you to have the cheap option. They want endless paperwork and bureaucracy. They want the Australian public to waste billions on them so they can "save" us from scammers who take millions.

freediver wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 3:49pm:

The government is the biggest scammer of all. Taxpayers lose more than $1000 per person per year to the cost of administrating the superannuation scheme. "Industry Experts" are calling for more protection because they are the ones that end up with the money. You can now get budget self-managed super for just over $1000 per year in additional administration costs (compared to if you were managing the same amount of money outside of super). These "experts" don't want you to have the cheap option. They want endless paperwork and bureaucracy. They want the Australian public to waste billions on them so they can "save" us from scammers who take millions.

Don't scan your passport or allow it to be scanned -

scammers could steal ALL your super.

But 30 billion a year is legally stolen in fees :(

Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 4:57pm:

But 30 billion a year is legally stolen in fees :(

yep - legalised scamming too.

He got greedy, and that's what scammers rely on

Like many others who got stung, all he could see was a higher interest rate, nothing much else mattered

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 5:03pm:

Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 4:57pm: But 30 billion a year is legally stolen in fees :( yep - legalised scamming too.

They make you fear your old age and retirement so they can profit from you by stealing from you so you will have less which is the very thing they make you fear :(

Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 5:09pm:

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:03pm: Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 4:57pm: But 30 billion a year is legally stolen in fees :( yep - legalised scamming too. They make you fear your old age and retirement so they can profit from you by stealing from you so you will have less which is the very thing they make you fear :(

Wherever there's a big pot of money you
can be sure the Govt is there taking some of it.

On TV news tonight - probate fees going up for Wills.

https://vic.liberal.org.au/media-releases/2024-06-27-allan-labor-governments-secret-plan-for-death?topic=

Victorians are set to be taxed beyond the grave by the Allan Labor Government
with a new form of death duties to be imposed under the guise of massive increases to probate fees.

While probate fees were previously set at a flat rate and capped
for estates valued at $5 million or more at a fee of $2,318.90,
Victorian families will now have to pay a probate fee based
on a sliding scale up to $15,407.40; an increase of 564.4 per cent.

Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::)

John Smith wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 5:54pm:

Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::)

Lee hasn't posted on this thread.   :-/

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 6:08pm:

John Smith wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:54pm: Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::) Lee hasn't posted on this thread.   :-/

Yeah, I was trying to figure out what the hell he was involving lee on this topic.

John Smith wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 5:54pm:

Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::)

None of the suckers are, that's why they get scammed

I gave up on Super, I still had it, but I started partial wage sacrifice depositing it in the bank and it got to a stage where it out-performed my super because there was no fees or any other funny money, nor fluctuating stock losses. I couldn't believe how much money I was getting, even after tax. Every time I looked at my Super, it was hardly doing a thing, it wasn't worth it, too many with their fingers in the pie

Bias_2012 wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 6:30pm:

John Smith wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:54pm: Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::) None of the suckers are, that's why they get scammed I gave up on Super, I still had it, but I started partial wage sacrifice depositing it in the bank and it got to a stage where it out-performed my super because there was no fees or any other funny money, nor fluctuating stock losses. I couldn't believe how much money I was getting, even after tax. Every time I looked at my Super, it was hardly doing a thing, it wasn't worth it, too many with their fingers in the pie

Just don't let anyone scan your passport -

that's all they need to steal all your super.

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 6:08pm:

John Smith wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:54pm: Lee never struck me as being the sharpest tool in the shed ::) Lee hasn't posted on this thread.   :-/

Lucky you're here to state the obvious ehhh idiot :D :D

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 5:51pm:

Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:09pm: Bobby. wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 5:03pm: Sir lastnail wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 4:57pm: But 30 billion a year is legally stolen in fees :( yep - legalised scamming too. They make you fear your old age and retirement so they can profit from you by stealing from you so you will have less which is the very thing they make you fear :( Wherever there's a big pot of money you can be sure the Govt is there taking some of it. On TV news tonight - probate fees going up for Wills. https://vic.liberal.org.au/media-releases/2024-06-27-allan-labor-governments-secret-plan-for-death?topic= Victorians are set to be taxed beyond the grave by the Allan Labor Government with a new form of death duties to be imposed under the guise of massive increases to probate fees. While probate fees were previously set at a flat rate and capped for estates valued at $5 million or more at a fee of $2,318.90, Victorian families will now have to pay a probate fee based on a sliding scale up to $15,407.40; an increase of 564.4 per cent.

I saw that on tonight’s report!
Cashing in on deaths… big hand in the cookie jar urn.
Victorian govt. is so broke…. they want part of the estates!

And then…. that hypocrisy…with all this  EOFY and up goes the inflation … rates are going to follow and also… real estate tipped to go up 5% all over Oz.
Honestly… I’m certain I recalled they said that by end 2024 interest rates were likely to go down.

Sophia wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 8:28pm:

I saw that on tonight’s report! Cashing in on deaths… big hand in the cookie jar urn. Victorian govt. is so broke…. they want part of the estates! And then…. that hypocrisy…with all this  EOFY and up goes the inflation … rates are going to follow and also… real estate tipped to go up 5% all over Oz. Honestly… I’m certain I recalled they said that by end 2024 interest rates were likely to go down.

Dirty Dan sent Victoria broke so now the Govt. dreams up new taxes every day -
just to pay the interest bill.

Bobby. wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 2:04pm:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-06-27/superannuation-scam-hostplus-fraud-afca-court-cryptocurrency/103962762 Super scammers defrauded Lee of his retirement savings. Industry experts are calling for better protections https://www.hotelmanagement.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Intrust-Super_AYS_H_CMYK-Flat-Blue.jpg By national consumer affairs reporter Michael Atkin updated 4h ago He wanted to invest $10,000 first to see how it performed. But scammers used the documents he'd provided to fraudulently take the lot. One phone call could have stopped it Lee was awarded 30 per cent of what he lost, about $54,000, leaving him worse off after paying legal fees.     In short: Lee Braz's entire super, $180,000, was stolen by scammers who used fraudulent documents to trick his fund.     He launched a four-year legal battle to get a refund from his super fund, but only got back a third, which didn't cover his legal fees.     What's next? Industry experts want the federal government to urgently increase security obligations, such as multi-factor authentication and checks on who owns a bank account when rolling over a member's super. Lee Braz was well into his 50s and knew he had to sort out his super. Then he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him do just that. But the call was the start of a nightmare that would see Lee's entire super balance, about $180,000, stolen. Before going ahead, Lee checked the company's website and saw it was properly registered in Australia. In sales documents it claimed to have impressive returns using money from self-managed super funds to invest in tech and finance giants like Google and Visa. Lee sent over his passport to open an account. He wanted to invest $10,000 first to see how it performed. But scammers used the documents he'd provided to fraudulently take the lot.

Ahah - I wondered where the problem happened.
These are the magic words - ' ......... he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him ....... '

If they contact you. Ignore them.
You should contact them.

Sprintcyclist wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 8:37pm:

Ahah - I wondered where the problem happened. These are the magic words - ' ......... he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him ....... ' If they contact you. Ignore them. You should contact them.

I have blocked dozens of phone numbers on my mobile from unsolicited calls.

I stopped asking them if they were making an unsolicited call
as none of them ever knew what that was -
or claimed not to know.

Sprintcyclist wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 8:37pm:

Ahah - I wondered where the problem happened. These are the magic words - ' ......... he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him ....... ' If they contact you. Ignore them. You should contact them.

Sprint nailed it. Was going to post the same.

Never and I mean never engage with anyone with regards to money if you receive an unsolicited call.
If the bank rings me, I ring them back and they understand that.

Now as to a copy of your passport. I have to scan and send my passport copy often.

I feel he must have given more information than this.

Super Nova wrote on Jun 27^th, 2024 at 10:51pm:

Sprintcyclist wrote on Jun 27th, 2024 at 8:37pm: Ahah - I wondered where the problem happened. These are the magic words - ' ......... he received a call from a Sydney company promising to help him ....... ' If they contact you. Ignore them. You should contact them. Sprint nailed it. Was going to post the same. Never and I mean never engage with anyone with regards to money if you receive an unsolicited call. If the bank rings me, I ring them back and they understand that. Now as to a copy of your passport. I have to scan and send my passport copy often. I feel he must have given more information than this.

"I have to scan and send my passport copy often."


According to this thread you're taking a big risk with your super.