Scammers Target our Elders. Learn How to Identify the Signs and Avoid Scams.
Financial scammers are everywhere. On our phones, on our computers - and they can even be in our homes.
Sadly, older Americans are often the targets of these attacks. According to the MetLife Study of Elder Financial Abuse, older Americans lose nearly $3 billion to financial scams every year.
To protect yourself and your loved ones from falling victim to a financial scam, it’s important to be able to identify the warning signs. Five common types of elder scams include:
- Government Imposter Scams call potential victims and pretend to be a representative of a government agency – like the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). They may claim that you owe them money, and you will be arrested if you do not comply immediately.
- Medicare or Health Insurance Scams involve people pretending to be a Medicare representative in order to steal personal information and/or money.
- Romance Scammers create fake internet profiles to try and exploit people around the world for their money. Often they pretend to live overseas and request money to pay for travel expenses or other emergencies.
- Computer Tech Support Scams target people who may not be as technologically advanced as others. The scammers often send pop-ups to these peoples’ computers, claiming that their device needs to be fixed - and say that they need to pay money to repair it.
- Elder Financial Abuse happens when a family member, friend, or caregiver extorts an elder in their life. They take advantage of their relationship to steal money, assets, credit, or anything else the elder has to offer.
Knowing the signs of a potential scam is just the first step in protecting you and your family.
To avoid putting your finances in jeopardy, we recommend that you never give your personal information to an unknown entity over the phone or through the internet – and always be wary of those who might take advantage of you or your elderly family members for financial gain.
As a reminder, CoreFirst Bank & Trust will never email or call on an unsolicited basis and ask for personal information such as account and social security numbers, passwords or user IDs.
If you have any questions, or believe you are the victim of a financial scam, don’t hesitate to contact CoreFirst Bank & Trust and report the scam with the Federal Trade Commission at 1-877-382-4357 or www.ftc.gov.
