ACCC issues guides on unit pricing for grocery retailers
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission issued guidance for grocery retailers about their obligations under the new Unit Pricing Code.
The code comes into effect on July 1 and requires larger supermarkets and online retailers to comply by 1 December 2009. The code has been prescribed by the Australian government as a mandatory code of conduct under the Trade Practices Act 1974, which gives it the force of law.
To help grocery retailers understand their obligations under the code, the ACCC has developed a number of education tools, including:
The business guidance is now available on the ACCC website and will be available in hard copy from mid-July. Consumer information is also available on the ACCC website, explaining the changes and what consumers can expect with the introduction of unit pricing in some supermarkets.
For more information about unit pricing or to obtain any of the business materials, call the ACCC unit pricing hotline on 1300 746 245.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and the ACCC jointly produced the Mobile premium services—information for consumers fact sheet to help users of mobile premium SMS to:
sign up to an ongoing service only if they want to
cancel services they no longer want
know where to get help or get a complaint resolved.
A fraudulent email that appears to be from the Australian Federal Police has been received by many consumers. The email says that the AFP is investigating you because your credit card has been used in purchases linked to known criminal organisations and that you should not contact your bank or the local police.
Scammers have written the email to make you feel like you have been involved in criminal activity and that you will be prosecuted if you do not cooperate with their demands. This email is designed to scare you into providing your personal and banking information and to deter you from complaining to your bank or the police.
The email demands that you click a link in the email to show your innocence. It also provides a link to ‘free monitoring of your account against all future hacking and phishing attack’.
If you receive such an email, do not click the links—deletethe emailimmediately. Responding will only give scammers a chance to get your personal information or money from you or to install harmful software onto your computer.
If you have clicked on the link or provided personal details, contact your financial institution immediately. You should also consider installing anti-virus and spyware detection software on your computer.
SCAMwatch stresses that the AFP would never send out emails requesting personal information or banking details for any reason.
For more details and a full copy of the fake email, visit the AFP website.
SCAMwatch is warning consumers to be on the lookout for spam email scams that secretly install viruses and spyware onto your computer and onto removable drives such as USB sticks. The spyware and viruses are hidden in song, video and picture files of celebrities, which often come as attachments or via links in the email.
SCAMwatch has received reports of a wave of emails disguised as tributes to Michael Jackson that contain viruses and worms.
One such email has the misspelled subject line ‘Remembering Michael Jackson’. This bogus email has a .zip file attached that contains Michael Jackson images and songs, but also secretly downloads malicious software onto your computer.
Be wary—viruses and worms can slow down or damage your computer drives or files. They can also harvest personal information from your computer or track your keystrokes, and can be used to steal your passwords and credit card details. They can also set up your computer to relay spam or malware.
SCAMwatch advises that you delete unsolicited emails without opening them and DO NOT click on links or open attachments to emails if you do not know the sender. If you are seeking photos, videos, songs or updates about Michael Jackson or any other celebrity, use websites that you know and trust.
SCAMwatch warned consumers that sports ‘investment’ schemes are just another form of gambling and are often outright scams. Don’t be fooled by the sales spin—these schemes are a fast way to lose money.
They are also known as sports arbitrage, sports betting, sports wagering, sports tipping and sports trading, and are marketed as a risk-free way to increase your wealth. Salespeople claim that they have techniques to capitalise on different odds offered by different bookies and present graphs showing extraordinary returns.
The schemes usually involve purchasing prediction software or entering into a betting syndicate and sometimes include a subscription to a tipping service. The ACCC receives numerous complaints about these schemes. Common stories are:
the software isn’t delivered or doesn’t work
money disappears from betting accounts without any bets being laid on your behalf
money cannot be withdrawn from the syndicate
the betting tips are taken from public sources like local newspapers
the company aggressively demands more money
the company cannot be contacted about problems or refunds.
The ACCC has produced a new Sports investment scam fact sheet to highlight the tricks used to convince you that these schemes are legitimate investments.
