Australia's landmark Scam Prevention Framework (SPF) law, passed in February 2025 and hailed as the world’s toughest anti-scam legislation, promised to make the country a fraudster’s hardest target by imposing obligations on banks, telecoms, and tech companies. However, nearly nine months later, the law remains largely unimplemented due to delays in releasing sector-specific controls and reimbursement rules critical for enforcement and consumer compensation.
The Australian Treasury has yet to finalize essential rules defining how entities comply and when victims receive reimbursements, leaving the framework stuck in bureaucratic limbo despite bipartisan support. Contributing to the stall was the May 2025 federal election and the departure of Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones, the scam prevention champion.
Industry experts highlight the difficulty in tying controls to reimbursements because some measures reduce risk probabilistically rather than guaranteeing absolute protection. For example, a telco blocking 95% of scam messages may be compliant even if some scams slip through, while banks face clearer liability if fraud goes undetected due to system failures.
Despite the legislative impasse, Australian banks have proactively deployed fraud controls and joined information-sharing initiatives, contributing to a 33% drop in scam losses in 2024 compared to 2023. The National Anti-Scam Centre reports financial losses fell to AUD 318.8 million.
Australia’s stalled SPF underscores the challenges of translating pioneering scam legislation from promise to practice, mirroring earlier delays seen with privacy law reforms. The law exists but its protective power remains theoretical pending Treasury action.
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