28 January 2010: Scam warning 

The APS has become aware that the new National Registration Scheme is providing opportunistic individuals with the chance to try and fool people into spending money on effectively worthless services.

There are two scams that we are currently aware of, one involving emails being sent to APS members chasing up outstanding membership payments and the other being an application for inclusion in a national register, with no undertaking as to the privacy of that information or the value of being included in its register.

The email purporting to be from APS Membership seeking membership renewal payment was sent from the address callitris2@bigpond.com under the name Merle Thompson.
Do not respond to the email. It is spam and has no link to the APS at all.

APS members are reminded to be cautious about unsolicited emails they receive. Official emails from the APS National office will have an address which ends ...@psychology.org.au.

Any emails identified as being from the APS but sent from an email address not ending ...@psychology.org.au should be treated as spam.

Warning signs

  • You receive an invoice from a company you have not previously dealt with
  • You receive an official looking application form from a company that you have not previously heard about, but it sounds legitimate
  • You receive an official sounding call or enquiry chasing payment of an outstanding invoice or application for a product or service that you have not requested

What you can do

  • Don't give out any information or pay any money without checking the validity of the company requesting it and what it is for
  • Check the ACCC Scan Watch service at www.scamwatch.gov.au
  • Check the ASIC scam site www.fido.gov.au
  • Check the Consumer Affairs/ Fair Trading sites in your State or Territory for information regarding current scams