Australia - Mass-Marketing Fraud "Back with a Vengeance"?

On July 18, the Melbourne Age published an article by journalist Eileen Ormsby on a purported surge in mass-marketing fraud schemes targeting Australians.  (The article refers to Nigerian scammers being "back with a vengeance," without citing any data to suggest that such schemes were ever away.)  The article provides some interesting details about various Australian victims who were defrauded in classic romance or auction-website schemes, including the scammers' use of technology to disguise their voices or make it appear that they are on live webcams with the victims.

Those interested in Ormsby's writing on crime can check out her blog, All Things Vice.