How Phone Scammers Target The Elderly

It is unbelievable that there are people in this world who deliberately target older adults as easy prey for their scams. There are many facets of why the elderly are more prone to phone scams.
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Older people make almost twice the number of purchases via phone than any other demographic. This purchasing behavior makes them especially vulnerable to scammers. Elderly people are more likely to live alone. They often do not have a trusted source to ask if they have questions about a potential scam.

Some of the most common scams on the elderly include:

• Charity Scams
  The scammer pretends to be with a charity organization. These scams pop up frequently in the wake of natural disasters. The scammers are counting on the very human desire to help those in need after a tragedy. They solicit a donation for a fake charity, and the funds disappear along with the phony charity.
• Unexpected Winnings
  A scammer pretends that they have “found” a large sum of money belonging to the individual they are targeting. The person needs to pay a fee for them to return the money. These con artists often pose as lawyers, and the fake money is from some long-forgotten investment or tax refund.
• Fraud Against Seniors
  The predator pretends to be from the Internal Revenue Service. The senior citizen receives a call warning that they owe significant back taxes. If they will pay today, the person is authorized to take a smaller payment.
• Fake Accident Ploy
  The fake accident ploy is a scam where the caller claims to be a friend or representative of a relative or child who has been in an accident and needs money sent right away.
• Lottery and Sweepstakes Scams
  The caller claims that they are with sweepstakes or lottery department. The victim of this scam receives a call informing them that they have won a large sum of money. They need to pay an upfront fee to have the funds delivered.
• Medicare and Medicaid Scams
  Medicare and Medicaid scams take advantage of the confusion around medical plans. The victim may have discussed health care plans via phone with a legitimate source in the past, so it does not seem strange to discuss it again. Of course, the hook is always a way to purchase additional insurance or pay to keep from losing their coverage. 

​How can you help protect older relatives and friends?

• Regularly call or visit. The more isolated an older individual feels, the more vulnerable they are to a con artist. Having fallen prey to a scam, seniors often hide the theft out of embarrassment or because they do not know where or how to report the fraud
• Talk to your older friends and relatives about the most common scams and encourage them to never give out information over the phone. Ask them to refer all calls that need them to pay money to you or another trusted source. Reassure them that you will let them know if it is a legitimate business that needs their attention.
• With their permission, set up safeguards at the bank. Some suggestions would be to agree to move their money into an account that automatically drafts their bills and other recurring expenses. A separate account links to a debit card that they keep possession of for their spending purposes.  Then agree on a monthly budget for the different spending account.
• Make sure they know that they can reach out to you or someone else, to discuss any phone calls that they are not sure of the validity. Remember, scammers, are constantly evolving their methods. 
• If an elderly relative is experiencing cognitive decline, petition to have someone take charge of their finances. This can be a complex situation in a family, so work together with family members to make the transition as easy as possible for the older person.
• Phone scams are not the only threat from con artists. They are also posing as a technical support specialist, account managers, and various other professionals. A study done in 2015 found that the elderly lose 12.8 billion dollars every year due to financial fraud. Remind your older friends and loved ones to monitor their credit and bank statements monthly for any signs of fraud. Offer to go over these statements with them if they are willing.