Banks, telcos and key digital platforms will be the first to come under new rules aimed at stopping scams and making sure people can get help quickly if something does go wrong.

The government also wants businesses to automatically reimburse people who lose $3000 or less to scammers under changes it is consulting on before the new rules come into effect on March 31, 2027.

It has designated the banking and telecommunications sectors and key digital platforms as those that need to get ready for the new scam prevention framework first, saying those are the areas where Australians face the greatest risk.

“Scams are costing Australians billions, and the human impact is even greater,” Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino said.

The new framework adds to a suite of tools already in palace for regulators and businesses to combat fraud.

There were almost 110 million scam calls and more than 41 million scam text messages blocked by telcos between October and December last year, and an SMS sender ID register will launch in July to make it harder for scammers to impersonate branded messages.

Communications Minister Anika Wells said everyone had a role to play “to stop people being ripped off by dodgy scams”.