Australia's Mandatory Scams Prevention Framework (SPF)
An economy-wide regulatory framework under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 requiring designated sectors—Banks, Telecommunications Providers, and Digital Platforms—to govern, prevent, detect, report, disrupt, and respond to financial scams.
The 6 Overarching Principles of the SPF
Every regulated entity designated under the Scams Prevention Framework must comply with six core statutory principles alongside sector-specific codes.
Scam Governance & Accountability
Document, implement, and maintain a senior-executive-approved scam prevention strategy, governance controls, risk appetite metrics, and independent assurance reviews.
Upstream Scam Prevention
Deploy technical and operational safeguards—including Confirmation of Payee (CoP), SMS Sender ID verification, advertiser KYB checks, and dynamic payment warnings.
Real-Time Scam & Mule Detection
Identify suspected scam communications, compromised credentials, and money-mule receiving accounts using behavioural biometrics, velocity rules, and network analytics.
Actionable Intelligence Sharing
Report scam intelligence, mule account identifiers, and emerging scam vectors in near-real time to the National Anti-Scam Centre (NASC) and sector regulators.
Rapid Disruption & Safe Harbour
Freeze, block, or take down suspected scam transactions, spoofed phone numbers, and fraudulent online advertisements under statutory safe-harbour protections.
Dispute Resolution & Redress (AFCA)
Maintain accessible victim reporting channels, transparent internal dispute resolution (IDR), and binding multi-sector external dispute resolution via AFCA.