NEW data from WestPac has revealed Midland in the top ten Western Australian scam hotspots.

According to the new research, Midland is also ranked fifth highest scam hotspot in the Perth metropolitan area.

WestPac’s head of fraud prevention Ben Young said people are being impacted by scams everywhere, regardless of their postcode.

“The scams reported to us stretch from the fast-growing suburbs of Western Sydney where there’s a relatively new hub of economic activity, to the tourist centre of Surfers Paradise and over to the West. The current scam-demic we’re facing is widespread,” he said.

The top scam types for losses are investment scams, romance scams, and remote access scams.

Western Australia also recorded the highest rate of scams in the country, at 3.6 scams reported per 1000 WestPac customers.

Mr Young said scammers were mainly targeting communities with increasing economic activity, or those with ageing populations.

“Scammers aren’t necessarily out there stalking the streets of these postcodes. They’re constantly evolving the way they target people, with many scams originating online or on social media platforms,” he said.

“This includes investment scams which account for fifty per cent of all losses, as well as buying and selling scams which evolve with the latest trends. These need to be shut down at the source.”

Mr Young said that despite advances in bank technology to help detect and stop scams, anyone sending or receiving money online should be careful.

Over the past two years, WestPac has invested more than $100 million into scam prevention technology, and hosts regular scam-spotting workshops around the country.

“Regardless of where our customers like, we’re continuing to invest in new ways to detect scams digitally and improve education and support through our branches and digital channels,” he said.