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A package delivery you need to confirm. A bank payment you didn’t expect. One of your kids, who’s lost their phone, texting for help from another…
For most of us, scam text messages like these are just a nuisance. But every year, they catch people out – often when they’re busy or stressed – especially when they see what looks like an official AusPost or myGov sender ID.
There is some good news. From July 1, texts like that in Australia should start showing up as “unverified”. It’s a new way to help recipients stop and ask themselves if it’s real. It could save a lot of heartbreak.
But if you run one of Australia’s 2.6 million small businesses, or help with a local community group, there’s a potential downside. If you don’t register soon, your texts are about to start being labelled as unverified.
If that’s you, what do you need to do before July 1? Or, if you’re simply sick of the scams, what can you do about it?
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Liz Minchin
Executive Editor + Business Editor
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Mohiuddin Ahmed, Adelaide University
Australia’s 2.6 million small businesses and community groups need to act fast, or risk having their texts mistaken for scams – all because of one new word.
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Kellie McGlynn, Deakin University; Shaun Rawolle, Deakin University
When it comes to life after Year 12, media and schools tend to focus on ATARs and university study.
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Sarah Diepstraten, WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research) ; John (Eddie) La Marca, WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research)
Scolyer captured the world’s attention when he volunteered for a world-first experimental treatment for brain cancer. He died on Sunday night, aged 59.
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Peter Chai, Waseda University
An issue that Japan’s governments have long neglected is now of serious concern to its population, a new survey shows.
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Rosemary Wyber, The Kids Research Institute; Australian National University; Kate Summer, The Kids Research Institute; Rachel Burgess, The Kids Research Institute Australia
More evidence is needed to understand how laundry could help curb skin disease.
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Vanessa Pirotta, Macquarie University; Justine O'Brien, UNSW Sydney; Phoebe Meagher, UNSW Sydney; Zara Bending, Macquarie University
Many marine creatures are among the 4,000 species affected by wildlife trafficking.
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Thomas J. Derrick, Macquarie University
Ancient furnace workers experimented with heating the ends of glass tubes to rework them. One day, someone blew into that tube and changed history.
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Karen Stollznow, University of Colorado Boulder; Griffith University
In 1866, the topic became so controversial that the Société de Linguistique de Paris banned discussions about language origins altogether.
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Politics + Society
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Andrew Gawthorpe, Leiden University
Iran and Israel have attacked each other for the first time since April.
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Irshad Ali, Auckland University of Technology
Labour’s proposed capital gains tax has revived a debate long deemed politically toxic. But growing pressure on NZ’s tax system is making it harder to avoid.
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Health + Medicine
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Michelle Wise, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
The latest research on menopause hormone therapy is reassuring, showing little to no association with stroke and blood clots, but benefits for bone health.
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Arts + Culture
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Wellett Potter, University of New England
In some ways, the new film has been four decades in the making. And it all comes down to Mattel’s savvy franchising strategy, starting in the 1980s.
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Off-street parking wishes
"Your article blithely observes that kerbside parking is unnecessary for statistical reasons. [But] kerbside parking is essential in areas settled prior to motor vehicles when dwellings were largely built without driveways or garages. Our largest population centres are Sydney and Melbourne. Inner city areas are short on any off-street parking. In fact, North Sydney Council has resident parking permits because of this. There must be some fairy godmother somewhere who can magic up some off-street parking. We would really welcome her."
Julia Bovard, North Sydney
The trouble for bookshops
"Bookshops in Australia are a tricky subject. As much as I would like to support local bookshops, they simply don’t, and probably can’t, carry a wide enough range of books to meet the interests of many readers. They focus on best-sellers (that is, trash), new releases and Penguin ‘classics’; anything else is pretty much ignored. The reality in Australia is that the market for quality books is tiny and to survive bookshops can’t serve those people. Australia can’t be compared to France or Italy in terms of reader interest in quality books. Sadly, a bookshop in Australia that sold only books on sport would probably be highly successful."
Gavin Oakes, Melbourne
One Nation's housing policy
"One Nation are proposing that people who are not citizens or permanent residents would be forced to sell their properties. Would this apply to Rupert Murdoch who took up American citizenship several years ago?"
John Upham
We'd love to hear from you. You can email us with your thoughts on our stories and each day we'll publish an edited selection.
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Melbourne VIC, Australia
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Government of South Australia
Adelaide SA, Australia
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Swinburne University of Technology
Hawthorn VIC, Australia
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