Protecting Your Senior Loved Ones from Being Scammed

Scammers continue to target older Americans as lucrative targets. A report by the FBI shows that seniors were scammed by almost $1 billion in 2020. Over 105,000 seniors were victims of scams, with an average loss of $9,175. Nearly 2,000 seniors lost more than $100,000.

Crooks have many ways to scam elders. You need to know what to look out for and how to protect your elderly parents.

How Senior Frauds and Scams May Target Your Parent

Because seniors are more trusting, vulnerable, and less likely to report incidents, they are prime targets for con artists.

Seniors may not know how fraud is reported, may feel ashamed of it, or fear that their loved ones will lose faith in them and take away their financial control.

Scammers also hope that scammers will convince older adults that they have retirement cash, a home, or credit that they can use against them.

Four Common Digital Scams Seniors Fail to Avoid

1. Confidence Fraud and Romance Scams

These scams target older people via social media and dating sites, appealing to their emotions. Scammers can manipulate victims into believing they are developing a friendship or a relationship. Scammers often use religion to gain their trust.

The scammer will request money from the victim or persuade him to send gift cards.

2. Identity Theft (Pharming and Phishing),

Identity theft is on the rise. One in four older adults has had their identities stolen.

These are the three digital methods that identity thieves use to steal identities.

• Pharming. These attacks encourage seniors to visit fake websites that appear to be legitimate. They will be asked to reveal personal information, such as passwords or account numbers.
• Phishing. This happens when seniors are tricked via email. An email scam will send a false message to trick the victim into divulging sensitive information. Victims might be told that there is a problem with their bank account or the delivery of a package. They may be encouraged by a link to correct the information.
• Smishing. This is phishing that uses SMS or texts. Victims are often sent false messages purporting to be from reputable businesses. These messages could encourage seniors to disclose personal information, make payments, or click on suspicious hyperlinks.

3. Non-Delivery, Non-Payment, Fraudulent Products

Due to the 2020 pandemic, many seniors are just starting to shop online. This opens up new avenues for scams targeting the elderly.

Seniors are not only being scammed by shopping sites. Scammers have more options to scam seniors via social media. Seniors claim that they have ordered products through social media links, and received either unrelated items or nothing.

According to the FBI, older victims filed over 14,000 Non-Payment/Non-Delivery complaints in 2020, with losses of over $40 million.

4. Tech Support Fraud

Scammers using tech support rely on seniors’ inexperience with digital devices and computers. Clicking on a fake website may cause a warning about viruses and other problems with your computer. A pop-up or site may offer a number that you can call for assistance. Victims might also be emailed about a renewal of their software license. This will require an immediate response.

Scammers will often request remote access to a computer. They then explain how they are “fixing” it. To charge for their “services,” they may request credit card numbers.

According to the FBI, the IC3 received 9,429 Tech Support Fraud reports from older victims in 2020. The IC3 lost more than $ 116 million. Seniors account for 66% and 84% respectively of total tech support reports.

Ways You Can Protect Your Senior Parent

You can take simple steps to help your elderly parent avoid being conned and empower them to do the same.

• Be cautious about downloading. Be sure to warn your parents not to open attachments from unknown people and to be cautious about attachments they receive.
• Don’t give out information. If they don’t know the company or the reason they need it, tell them not to share their personal information online, by email, phone, or mail.
• Make sure the computer is secured. Check that your parents have the most current anti-virus, security and malware software from reputable providers.
• Bank safeguards should be set up. Set up a small local account to monitor your parent’s financial decisions. Set spending limits and set alerts. Save their money in a safer account.
• If a pop-up appears, turn off your computer. If your parents get a pop-up, or their phone locks up, have them disconnect from the internet. Pop-ups could spread malware. Enable pop-up blockers.
• Be on the lookout for email scammers. Scammers often spoof companies and use strange grammar. Don’t click on the “unsubscribe” link if you aren’t sure about an email. This may confirm to scammers that they still have a live address. You can contact the company via its website and not through an email link if you have questions.

How to Protect Your Senior Parent from Being Scammed

There are steps you can take to help your parent. These are the steps to take if your parent is being scammed.

You can contact your FBI local field office, or submit an online tip. You can also file a complaint at the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.

You should provide as much detail as you can if you are required to report to the FBI.

• Contact dates
• Descriptions of your interactions and the instructions were given to you by the scammer
• Communication methods
• Payment methods
• Names of the scammer/company
• The perpetrator may use the following information: phone numbers, email addresses, and mailing addresses.
• Where the funds were sent (wire transfers, prepaid cards), You should be prepared to give the account numbers, names, and names of financial institutions.

FBI encourages you to preserve original documents, emails, faxes, logs, and other communications.

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