Frequently asked questions
Have you received a call or email claiming that your mobile number has been used to harass others and threatening an investigation by police or a government agency? Be wary – this is a common scam.
Some Aussies are targeted by scammers pretending to be a team member of E.Tel or ACMA.
If you receive one of these calls, hang up. Scammers are trying to trick you into providing your personal and financial information. E.Tel will never call you to request your personal or financial information. If you have any doubt whether a call or email you’ve received from the E.Tel is legitimate, hang up and contact our Customer Support on 1300 383 588 or at support@etel.com.au. If you’re unsure whether a call or email you’ve received from any company is genuine, contact them via the phone number or email address on their website. Do not rely on contact numbers or links that may be provided by email or SMS.
If you are concerned that your identity has been compromised or you have been a victim of a scam, contact your bank immediately.
Scams are becoming more frequent with the rise of AI and it is important to stay up to date in order to protect yourself. We recommend reading ACCC’s Little Black book of Scams which identifies the top and most common scams you should know about:
Investment scams (e.g. VIP "investment groups")
Threat and penalty scams (e.g. Unpaid bills, road rolls)
Scams to trick you into providing personal information
Fake jobs, employment, or business opportunities
Dating and romance scams
Unexpected money or prizes
Online shopping, classified and auction scams
Every Aussie has received scam calls or SMS before. Luckily, blocking further communications from the caller is quite straightforward for most devices. Below are some instructions for Android and iOS:
Android (Samsung, Google, Huawei etc.)
iOS (Apple) The instructions may change depending on your device's manufacturer, please be sure to check your manufacturer's website if the above instructions do not apply for you.
You can reduce and mitigate your risk to Scams by:
Protecting your personal information and not sharing it with unknown or unsolicited callers;
Changing default PINs and passwords on newly acquired equipment and devices;
Using strong PINs and passwords (e.g. Not “1234” or “0000” or “password” etc.);
Changing PINs and passwords regularly;
Locking your devices with secure PINs;
Ensuring that your voicemail PINs are secure;
Not responding to missed calls or SMs from unknown international Numbers, unknown Australian Numbers or an unknown source;
Not clicking on URLs or making return calls to telephone Numbers contained in the SMS from unknown international Numbers or unknown Australian Numbers or an unknown source;
Blocking suspicious or unknown Australian Numbers or international Numbers on devices and use of Blocking services or products, where available, on landlines; and
You can report the scam to ACCC's Scamwatch Service at www.scamwatch.gov.au.
To protect you from unauthorised high-risk transactions, additional identity authentication processes will be used to authenticate your identity, before we undertake any of the following high risk transactions:
Any transaction that may result in you losing access to your service such as porting or sim swaps.
Changing your account information or security information.
Adding or removing a person as an Authorised Representative
Disclosing of your personal, business or account security information
Addition of ongoing, or a large one-off charge being applied to your account.
In cases where we reasonably suspect that someone has unauthorised access to your inbox, we may impose even more stringent security measures to protect you.