Key organisations have become aware of the dangers and consequences of online romance scams, and have worked in a Fusion Cell to do what they can to prevent scams.
Under the auspices of the National Anti-Scam Centre a ‘Fusion Cell’ was convened to bring all of the willing players together to address the emotional and financial harm of romance scams. Fusion cells are time-limited taskforces designed to bring together expertise from government and the private sector to take action to address specific, urgent scam issues.
Participants
The participants in this Fusion Cell were wide ranging including (copied from the final report):
| Dating platforms – eHarmony – Match Group – RSVP Law enforcement – Australian Federal Police – South Australian Police – Victoria Police Cryptocurrency – Swyftx Government – AUSTRAC Digital platforms – Meta | Banking – Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) – Commonwealth Bank of Australia – Defence Bank – Macquarie Bank – National Australia Bank – Westpac Victim support – Consumer Action Law Centre – IDCARE – Lifeline Australia – Tracy Hall Consulting Academic – Monash University |
I was honored to be asked to give the victim’s perspective to the Inaugural meeting of this Fusion Cell in July 2025.
The Fusion Cell activity is concluded and a final report is now available,
A news report highlighting the report’s outcomes identifies a number of areas including from the news report:
“Disruption Outcomes, such as
- Established new frameworks between banks and digital currency exchanges for sharing suspected scam transactions, stopping the theft before it occurs
- Sharing of URLs used in romance baiting investment scams with digital currency exchanges and identifying related scam-linked blockchain transactions
- 377 scam websites, WhatsApp accounts, emails and social media profiles referred for takedown and blocking
- 1,004 suspected scam transactions and 168 suspect scam cryptocurrency wallet addresses referred for investigation, blocking, and blacklisting
- Improved on-platform screening and safety by sharing romance scam trends and scammer tactics intelligence with digital platforms
New operational capabilities, such as
- Developed three frontline response guides for bank staff, law enforcement, and support workers/carers to promote consistent, trauma-informed scam identification, disengagement, and referral
- Piloted a disengagement referral process for banks, connecting customers still engaged in a romance scam to support organisations. Despite a limited number of referrals, the trial provided valuable insights into operational challenges and strategies for connecting victims with appropriate support services
Support and resource development, such as
- Developed a pilot Online Relationship Health Check, a 20-question self-assessment tool to help victims identify romance scam risk factors in their relationships
- Raised awareness and early intervention capabilities in the aged care and disability support sectors through hosting industry forums for management and client-facing staff
- Delivered an Australian-first romance scam online peer-support group pilot demonstrating the benefits of small group, recovery support led by fellow participants
- Co-designed, with First Nations community members, a culturally appropriate romance scam awareness poster in the Murrinh-patha language
- Developed a Language Matters guide to support crime-accurate, trauma-informed and non-stigmatising communication across the ecosystem
- Created and delivered train-the-trainer resources to uplift support worker staff capability and build confidence in organisations working with at-risk populations”
Online Relationship Health Check
The Online Relationship Health Check is worth checking out. Would it have helped you if it had been available when you were scammed? Just this week I received an email from a woman who said that she did not know about romance scams before she became engaged in one recently.
What enheartens me the most from the work of the Fusion Cell is the active takedown and blocking of URLS, websites, WhatsApp accounts, emails, social media profiles and the investigation, blocking and blacklisting of scam transactions and suspect scam cryptocurrency wallets. These activities come closest to punishing the perpetrators, which mostly cannot be done because of cross country jurisdictional issues. Stopping them being able to work their scams so easily comes the closest to this.
In my day (2012), none of this was even thought about. We were on our own, mostly, with little support from the many organisations around us. There had been a couple of face-to-face support groups, and I started one in Melbourne in 2015. That group instigated all of the victim advocacy I have done over the years.
For many years the ACCC focussed on educating potential victims through warnings. More recently the National Anti-Scam Center has worked more closely with the banks. To see such a broad group of organisations involved in the various steps of the scam process, coming together and working together, and the outcomes they can achieve though this is heartening.
I commend the Fusion Cell and all its members on their work. I just wish it had been done sooner.
PS: Other Fusion Cells have been done for Job scams and Investment scams. See the reports on their outcomes here.
Other news:
Earlier this year I was invited to participate in a radio discussion about how scams have changed over the years. For several years I had pulled away from public speaking – after seven years of victim advocacy I was burnt out. However I could not resist the invitation from Life Matters. See the details on my Media Presence page.
I came away from that radio interview with, as often in my experience talking to the media, frustration that there was not enough time to say all I wanted to say. It became clear to me that there was more I wanted to say. More that encapsulates all I have learnt over the years of writing this blog, my book, and my work with romance scam victims. So…
I’m writing a book
I’m writing a book, for victims… and hope to have this ready in the next month or so. If anyone would like to be a beta reader – someone who reads the draft and comments on it, please drop me a note in the comments. Cover reveal will be next…
