Professor Andreas Chai was annoyed by the text message: he was having a busy day and now he’d been overcharged on the Logan Motorway toll. It clearly needed sorting out. So, without thinking, he clicked on the link. It turned out to be a scammer. “The fact is that being time-poor can make us vulnerable to falling for scams, and I fell for it,” he says.
Scams are a key piece of a much bigger puzzle at the Academy of Excellence in Financial Crime Investigation & Compliance, where Chai is Director. Bringing together expertise in criminology, forensic accounting and information technology, its aim is to detect, monitor and investigate financial crime – from drug trafficking and terrorism to tax evasion, fraud and more.
This kind of crime generates almost $50 billion in Australia each year, which is larger than the annual GDP of Tasmania. Scams account for about $2 billion of that figure, and only a fraction is ever recovered. It’s a vast challenge and constant battle to stay one step ahead, but Chai is more than up for the fight.
Think before you click
“Scamming ruins people’s lives,” says Chai. “And the worst thing is that it targets the vulnerable.” Every year that you get older, he points out, you’re four per cent more likely to fall victim to a scam. Illiterate people are also high on the list, as are those in remote areas, with loneliness a major factor.
However, Chai notes that, despite being a Griffith graduate, you might be susceptible to the scammers, too. “You could be a doctor or a lawyer – or anyone. It’s because we don’t tend to think we’re vulnerable. And we’re busy, so our guard is down.”
Teens are another target: boys in particular are vulnerable to ‘sextortion’. “They think they’re chatting online with someone who’s romantically interested in them who gets them to share explicit material of themselves, but the scammer then blackmails them for money to stop them from sharing it,” Chai says.
He says a key defence is to slow down, take your time and talk to someone about it. “But the frequency that young people are communicating online means they might not have the time or space to think about doing that.”
That’s why the Academy is keen to communicate with these young people. It holds workshops in schools that include a focus on sextortion, and its experts regularly appear across the media discussing scams. Plus, they’re running an ongoing project with the police to reduce people’s vulnerability to romance scams and better support the victims.
One step ahead
The Academy is also home to the kind of deep expertise that’s helping keep our money safe – without us even knowing it. It applies a simple principle to its complex work. “Follow the money,” says Chai. And that’s exactly what they do – even though it’s a common assumption that financial crime leaves no trace.
But the footprints are there – if you know what to look for. Take transactions made via cryptocurrency, for example. “A lot of criminals think crypto is hidden, but the reality is you can chase all the transactions because it’s all on the blockchain, which is publicly available,” says Chai. “It’s all traceable and we have the intelligence to act and interrupt it from happening.”
It’s vital to get this expertise out there, which is why the Academy is now training people to help identify and report those trails. This ultimately makes crime less profitable, helps law enforcement and protects the community.
The Academy is fighting financial criminals on all fronts, including the national stage – such as when its experts appeared before the Senate and helped shape new anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) laws.
“That was a big win,” Chai says. “The technology is running ahead of our brains, but our brains need to come up with new rules and ways of dealing with the environment we’re in. Things are advancing so quickly in the AI space, and it’s only going to heat up more.”
Future proofing
The Academy now works with seven banks, including three of the ‘big four’, plus two police forces. It will soon expand into Asia through a new partnership with KPMG and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
And as the Academy evolves, it’s not just cementing systems for authorities and protecting the community, but also offering pathways into emerging careers.
“Most people think working in a bank is about managing money, but really it’s about detecting and disrupting crime, and we’ve had some great student outcomes,” Chai says. “Top students have come through our programs and gone into the banks as well as national intelligence. This is having a big impact in making Australia a safer place – and that’s really fulfilling.”
Professor Andreas Chai’s five steps to beating a scam
- Do your own research. Google the business to check it’s legitimate and that their email and contact details are consistent with what you find on the web.
- Take your time. Don’t rush into anything – so you can investigate and think it through.
- Talk to friends and family. Run it past people who can provide advice or sense-check.
- Never pay any money or share personal details. The situation will only get worse.
- Be aware of the tactics. Scammers will exploit timing to contact you when you’re vulnerable, such as when you’re expecting a package or an invoice.
Looking to enhance your financial crime knowledge or fill a skills gap in your organisation? Check out the Academy’s micro-credentials and short courses
Image captions (top to bottom):
- Andreas Chai (far right corner) at the Hong Kong Business School (HKUST) Signing Ceremony.
- Andreas Chai.
- Andreas presenting at the Better Business Conference for year 12s.
Published 26 March 2026
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