Ella always thought she was pretty online savvy — which gave her confidence when she decided to sell some shoes online.
However, a close call with a scammer has made her think twice.
"Any other time [scammers have reached out], they've tried to get the money really quickly," she said.
"But she was … so down to earth with me. It seemed pretty genuine."
Seemingly keen to buy her shoes, a woman messaged Ella about purchasing them and convinced her to use PayID, which she was not familiar with.
From there, it got more complicated again — with the buyer claiming PayID had sent them an email saying they had to transfer an additional $500 to Ella's PayID to upgrade her account to a "business account", in order to overcome a payment limit and allow the transaction to go through.
That fake email, sent to Ella too, said Ella had to reimburse that extra money before any of the cash would actually be able to get into her account.
Looking back, Ella said she could now clearly see the red flags, but after hours of back and forth with who she thought was a real person, it seemed so real.
"I was more concerned for her, thinking I was going to steal her money," she said.
"She [seemed] so worried about losing her own money.
"I'm only doing cash from now on.
"It makes me question a little bit more, 'Is it worth posting?' I could either lose money out of it or waste my time [trying to avoid scammers]."
It was a similar story for Horsham resident Paris Fielder, who was flooded with the PayID impersonation scam when she listed some items online about a month ago.
"I think I got five [messages like this] for one item — four in half an hour," Ms Fiedler said.
"It was really annoying, especially when it's so consistent. Someone would message you and you'd assume straight away it would be a scammer."
While she did not hand over any money, for a period there she did question her instincts.
"I wasn't convinced but I was feeling very bad … they were saying, 'Now I'm not going to have any money; I sent it all to you'.
"They're very convincing."
She said it has made her warier about selling things online in the future.
"I didn't want to push away someone that was legit," she said.
"It's made me more cautious and [reminded me] to stick to my guns."
How does the impersonation scam work?
There are a few slight variations making the rounds, including Osko being referenced in place of PayID "business accounts", but the end goal is the same — tricking a seller into giving the scammer money and then disappearing.
Scammers, usually using fake or compromised social media profiles, make an offer to purchase an item for sale online and push for PayID to be used for the transaction, asking for the seller's PayID email.
Shortly after, they will claim they have received an update from PayID saying as the seller does not have a "business account", the transaction could not be completed.
To combat this, the buyer allegedly has to send extra money over to upgrade the account, which they will pressure the seller to immediately "reimburse".
A fake email from PayID will usually be generated as "proof" of the issue and be sent to the seller as well, making the issue appear more legitimate.
Customer protection key for PayID
A spokesperson for Australian Payments Plus said they became aware of scams of this nature in mid-2022.
They said it was vital customers were aware they would "never, under any circumstances, have to send money first to receive a payment via PayID".
"Additionally, customers will never need to take any additional action such as upgrading their account to a business or premium account or pay any additional fees before money can be received into their bank account [even if they are using PayID as a way of receiving money from customers in return for goods and services].
"PayID does not operate any rules around payments being sent or received from a personal versus a business account.
"To receive a payment using PayID, customers only need to register a PayID through their bank which they can do within their banking channel."
They said while an increase in the sophistication and prevalence of fraudulent behaviour meant customers needed to be vigilant, PayID remained a safe way for customers to receive money into their bank accounts.
"Protecting customers against scams requires a collective effort and Australian Payments Plus continues to work closely with the banks, the broader financial services industry, regulators and law enforcement to combat this issue."
Both Tasmania Police and a spokesperson for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said they were aware of the PayID impersonation scam.
The ACCC spokesperson said elements to look out for were the fact that these scammers "often won't haggle over the price and will state they will send someone to pick up the goods without viewing them".
"PayID is managed by your bank and you will never receive communication from PayID directly," the spokesperson said.
They also urged Australians to be wary of anyone who is willing to pay a maximum price and/or requests a third party collect a high-value item without viewing it first.
You've been scammed — what's next?
Fortunately, Ella has already been in contact with her bank and was able to cancel her pending transaction — but not all Australians catch their scams in time.
ACCC said just last year, $260,000 was lost to PayID impersonation scams alone — but there are tools to help you know what to look out for, or where to turn afterwards.
Step one, the ACCC said, was contacting your bank or financial institution as soon as possible.
Then, contact the platform on which you were scammed, and inform them of the circumstances surrounding it. After that, they said, tell your friends and family.
"It helps to share your experience. They can offer support and you can help protect them from scams."
Scams can also be reported on the Scamwatch website.
