SCAM #1: Grandchild Impersonation

 

One of the most prevalent senior scams involves young people posing as grandchildren on the phone. Typically, they’ll say they’re in an emergency and need to make an urgent payment for college, rent, or their car loan.

 

How to avoid: Remind loved ones to always ask for identity confirmation details when they receive financial requests from family members via phone or email, such as another family member’s name.

 

SCAM #2: Medicare Identity Theft

 

Medicare scams are on the rise. Fraudsters try to get seniors’ Medicare Numbers and personal information to charge services to the account.

 

How to avoid: Make note that Medicare will never:

• Contact them for their Medicare Number or personal information without advance permission
• Call them to sell something
• Promise rewards or services if they provide your Medicare Number

 

SCAM #3: Fake Lottery or Sweepstakes

 

Sometimes fraudsters will tell seniors over phone, or email, that they’ve won a lottery and sweepstakes; but, they’ll have to claim their prize for a fee, sometimes upwards of $1,000.

 

How to avoid: Tell friends/family to be skeptical of any financial reward offered online for a giveaway they don’t remember entering.

 

Scam #4: Predatory Romantic Partner

 

Fraudsters posing as romantic interests online via social media or email can take an emotional toll on lonely seniors looking for companionship. In fact, romance scams resulted in the biggest financial losses last year for people over 60. The grooming campaign usually goes something like this: an older adult meets someone on a social media site or dating app, and they chat for weeks or months online without meeting in person. The romantic interest may say they’re out of the state or country and can’t meet. Then the person will ask for financial help, and they’ll keep asking until the victim realizes they’re being

swindled.

 

How to avoid: Encourage those who engage in online dating to set up video calls with partners to screen for false identities and to never offer financial help to someone they haven’t met in real life.

 

Scam #5: Tech Support

 

Scammers will often pretend to be associated with Microsoft, Apple, or a security company and claim to have detected a threat on the senior’s device. They may ask for remote access to the device or personal login information to address the threat.

 

How to avoid: Make sure your loved one knows how to spot fraudulent tech support attempts. Here are some signs of a scam:

• A phone call from a tech company like Microsoft or Apple (these companies will never initiate communications with a user)
• The message directs you to immediately click a link, make a phone call, or make a payment
• The message contains poor grammar and misspelled words
• The message appears as a pop-up on your computer