The Federal Government is escalating its battle against scammers, announcing a public consultation on proposed stringent, mandatory industry codes for the private sector.

The move is the latest in the Government's ongoing efforts to combat scams, which reportedly cost Australians a staggering $3.1 billion in 2020.

The proposed Scams Code Framework aims to establish clear roles and responsibilities across the scams ecosystem, with an initial focus on banks, telecommunications providers, and digital platforms. The Framework is designed to introduce minimum, consistent obligations for all regulated businesses to prevent, detect, disrupt, and respond to scams.

Regulated businesses would be expected to implement robust measures to address the risk of scams on their services. Non-compliance could result in severe penalties, a move that underscores the Government's commitment to tackling this issue.

The consultation paper, released today, seeks feedback on various aspects of the proposed Framework including its design and structure and obligations for regulated businesses to prevent, detect, disrupt and respond to scams. It's also proposing new requirements for regulated businesses to develop and maintain an anti-scam strategy, improving reporting and information sharing arrangements, establishing clear complaints handling and dispute resolution pathways for consumers, including redress where applicable for consumers when regulated businesses have breached the code. It's about determining the role of the regulators that will monitor and enforce the Framework.

Submissions to the consultation and the survey will close on 29 January 2024.

The Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, the Hon Stephen Jones MP, and the Minister for Communications, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP, have both voiced their support for the proposed Framework.

"Behind every dollar lost to scams is a tragic story, but we're making every effort to get those losses down," Jones said in a statement. "These tough new codes would make it really clear what the obligations are on industry to prevent scams and better protect people and businesses. We went to the election with a commitment to fight scams and this announcement is the next step.'

Rowland said fighting these sophisticated criminals is a whole-of-society effort.

"Government, industry and the community all have a role to play. New scam codes will ensure we have tailor-made requirements for each sector to keep Australians safe. This discussion paper will help inform our next steps. But scammers are on notice: the Australian Government will use every tool at our disposal to stop them ripping off hard working Australians," she stated.

In its 2023-24 budget, the Government allocated $86.5 million in funding to establish a National Anti-Scam Centre, create Australia's first SMS Sender ID Registry, and enhance the work of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission in identifying and taking down investment scam websites.