Scams Used to Target the Elderly
Telemarketing is on of the popular ways that scam artists get in touch with their elderly prey. Scammers will call up an elderly target and pretend to be an employee of a sweepstakes company. The scammer will say that the person that they have called has won some kind of cash or merchandise award. Then the scammer will poceed in exciting the elderly person about their “winnings”. Once the elderly person is properly entranced in the conversation and the prize they’ve just won, the scammer will throw in that they will need you to pay a processing fee or some other type of fee to secure your award. No matter what the “fee” is, NEVER ever pay it. These people are scam artists set out to take advantage of anyone in their path. There is not a prize and you have not won a sweepstakes. Real sweepstakes do not require you to spend money to get your winnings.
A variation on the above elderly scam is where the scam artists send out mail saying that you have won a contest, prize, cruise, vacation, etc. The notification will tell you to call a particular phone number in order to claim your prize. Once they get you on the phone they then inform you that you must pay a fee to receive the prize. If you hesitate they will then tell you about a supposed time limit. The scammer will tell you that if you don’t pay now then you will forfeit your “winnings”. This is a scam! Hang up immediately! Do not pay these horrible people!
Also be on the lookout for banking scams. The scam artist will call you claiming that they are employed by your bank. Then the scammers will ask you for your bank account number to confirm that you are the correct person that they should be speaking with. They could also come up with a variety of other reasons why they would need your account number. This is a scam! NEVER tell anyone your bank account number. Your bank will never contact you like this. If you get one of these phone calls and feel it might be legitimate, hang up and call your banking company. They will then be able to tell you whether or not the contact was legit. More often than not the phone call was a scam artist trying to steal your money.
Another scam out there is one that can hit the elderly population hard. There are scammers that are focusing their attention on elderly people who are on Medicare. Since the majority of the elderly population can say that they are signed up on Medicare, scam artists decided to use that to their advantage. Scammers will call an elderly person and claim to be working for Medicare. The scammer will then tell the elderly citizen that Medicare needs to update their records or confirm a transaction or some other reason that they would be calling. Then the scammers asks for the elderly person’s social security number and other personal information. NEVER give out your social security number.
The last elderly scam that I want to mention has to do with reverse mortgages. Reverse mortgages are very popular with the elderly population. Therefore, scammers will use that popularity to their advantage. The scammer will call the elderly person claiming to have information about a reverse mortgage. Then they tell you that there is a fee to receive the information. Do not pay for this information. HUD offers information about reverse mortgages for free. Even mortgage companies will provide information free of charge.
There are so many scams running in the US every day. Too many to list here. Some scam artists will even come to an elderly person’s home claiming to work for the power company, phone company, water company or some other local company that the elderly person may have an account with. The scammer will want to come inside to “check” out the service the homeowner is receiving orthey will claim that the elderly person’s bill has not been paid and the scammer is there to collect payment. Never ever allow anyone in your home before you call the company they are claiming to work for. Never pay them or give out any kind of personal information such as your bank account, credit card or social security number.
Always trust your instincts. If you feel uneasy about what someone is telling you, then stop the conversation. Hang up or close the door. You NEVER have to give your personal information to these people no matter how much they try to guilt or intimidate you. To scam artists, guilt and intimidation are their favorite tools of the trade. Don’t be their next victim. Stay safe!
