With advancements in technology and evolving tactics, scammers are becoming more personalized and more believable than ever. If you aren’t careful, you or your loved one could fall victim. Here’s what you can watch out for.
Who do scammers target?
The FBI reports in 2023, elderly people (aged 60 and older) lost roughly $3.4 billion to scams, an 11% increase from 2022.
Amy Nofziger, Director of Fraud Victim Support at AARP Fraud Watch Network, says they receive around 400-500 calls every single day from people who are concerned about fraud and scams. Nofziger says scammers tend to target older adults, because they hold the majority of wealth in the United States.
Michele Mason with the Better Business Bureau says seniors are most likely to lose money over the phone.
The top scams victimizing seniors are the following:
- Romance scams
- Investment/cryptocurrency scams
- Gift card scams
- Texting scams
- Home improvement scams
- Imposter scams
“People do not report their victimization to law enforcement, whether they don’t even know they’re victims, or they have some embarrassment, shame, or they don’t think anything is going to happen,” Nofziger says.
“We’re not seeing as many new scams as we’re seeing new twists to old scams,” Mason says. “Sometimes, scammers refresh the narrative so that they hope you fall victim.”
Scamming tactics in elders
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Romance scams
Romance scammers create fake online profiles and pretend to be someone looking for love or companionship. Scammers attempt to build a relationship with you or your loved one and then try to convince them to send money. Romance scams can take months or years for the scammer to dupe a person.
Romance scams have become increasingly common in the senior community, and it’s become a significant issue within the past few decades in light of ever-growing technological advancements.
“Unfortunately, we find that people not only lose money to this scam but lose big,” Mason says. Gunter says in 2023, romance scams averaged $2,000 per victim, making them a high-risk scam.
“Scammers are honing in on someone’s loneliness, and they are willing to invest time in befriending or creating a romantic relationship with someone if they believe that person has a lot of money and that they dupe them,” Mason says.
Scammers commonly use social media to create a fake identity and lure a victim into believing their connection is real.
Once that trust is established, the scammer will use that trust to manipulate the victim into sending them money. The scammer might say something like, “I’m trying to visit my family for the holidays, but flights are really expensive,” and ask for a loan. Or, the scammer might express interest in meeting the victim in person and ask for travel money.
When it comes to preventing romance scams, the best way to protect our seniors is to simply stay in touch with them and know what’s going on in their lives.
“If you’re connecting with your family and asking what’s going on in their lives, they’re going to be more inclined to tell you if they have met someone online or are interested,” Gunter says.
“Criminals are online whenever you are online, and they will become whoever you want them to be to try to steal your money,” Nofziger says.
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Investment/cryptocurrency scams
Scammers will make high-pressure calls about a ‘great opportunity to invest in’ but force a victim to act in a limited time frame.
Mason says she’s seen investment and cryptocurrency scams climb to the top for elderly people, because seniors have more disposable income and want to invest. Cryptocurrency is still relatively new and unfamiliar to many, and scammers take advantage of that.
“There’s a big fear of losing out on a great opportunity. Scammers have really learned the psychology of how to pinpoint scamming someone who’s older, and they do it very well,” Mason says.
Victims may see they’re making a profit, but Mason says the problem occurs when a person attempts to withdraw these funds. They might not be able to access their account, need a password when they’ve never created one, have to pay a fee to access their account, or the scammer will lock the account and ghost the victim.
“At this point, that’s when the victim usually starts to realize they’re a victim of a scam, and, unfortunately, all of their money is gone,” she says.
“We’re hearing about these daily, and people are losing hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not millions,” she says.
To prevent falling victim to investment or cryptocurrency scams, research any related opportunities before investing. Don’t trust promises of guaranteed profits or high returns and be cautious of offers. If someone you’ve met online is talking to you about a potential opportunity to invest, you might want to stay away. Last, be wary of unsolicited offers, especially through email, text or other social media platforms.
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Gift card scams
Commonly found in the workplace, a person might receive a text or email supposedly from a boss or coworker asking them to purchase a gift card to a boss on behalf of a group of coworkers. Scammers will ask them to scratch off the back of the gift card and send the gift card number.
Kim Gunter, Vice President of Marketing with the Tennessee Valley Federal Credit Union says gift card scams average around $500. These types of losses are especially devastating since a victim is unable to get back the money they spent.
“If you’ve fallen for that scam, you’re pretty much at a loss, because you may have paid cash for those gift cards, or you may have used a debit or a credit card, but the money is spent,” Gunter says. “There’s no getting that money back once the scammers have the gift card number and drain it.”
To prevent yourself or others from falling for a gift card scam, don’t share gift card redemption codes with anyone and be cautious of unsolicited requests for gift cards. If a person is claiming to be a coworker or boss asking you to purchase a gift card, double-check to make sure it’s actually them before responding to the message.
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Texting scams
Texts claiming to be from a financial institution state your debit card has been compromised. The scammer might ask you to click a link to confirm a purchase. If you click on the link, it will most likely lead to a website that collects personal information, card information or account login information.
Gunter says money lost to text scams in 2023 averaged around $1000 per consumer, and what she says she’s seeing recently are mass scam texts, especially here in Chattanooga.
Gunter says scammers might intentionally send out these links when banks or credit unions aren’t open, such as later in the evening, weekends, or around the holidays.
She says the difference between a real text and a scam text is that the scam text will ask you to verify your information. A real text will only ask you to verify if you’ve made a transaction with a simple yes or no answer, and people are safe to respond to those.
“The scam text is not going to ask for a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer,” Gunter says. “They’re going to say there was a fraudulent transaction for $35 in Alabama, click here to verify your information and, at that point, it’s going to be asking you for login or card information.”
“There’s nothing that urgent that can’t be fixed within the next business day,” she says.
The best thing you can do is not respond and contact your financial institution. If you’ve already responded, stop communication and call your financial institution at a number you know is theirs—not one provided in the email or text.
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Home improvement scams
Scammers ask for money paid up-front for a home improvement project that they never complete.
The Better Business Bureau reported home improvement scams as their third riskiest scam among older adults aged 65 and older. Sometimes, scammers can be referrals from trusted loved ones.
Mason says recently, a woman hired a supposed contractor in North Georgia and gave them more than $25,000 upfront for a project that was never completed. Turns out, the contractor she paid had already spent time in jail for home improvement scams.
Mason says many people look for ads online for home contractors, but it’s important to make sure a home contractor has proper licensing, at least three quotes, and are insured.
The Federal Trade Commission has a list of ways to protect yourself against home improvement scammers, along with some red flags you’d want to avoid. Be sure to read online reviews carefully and read contracts thoroughly. Last, never pay the full amount for the job upfront.
“If they’ve just outright taken money and never started a job, we would certainly recommend that someone files a complaint through law enforcement and tries to take criminal action against that contractor,” she says.
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Imposter scams and AI
A scammer pretends to be someone trustworthy, like a friend, family member or company representative, to steal money or personal information.
Similar to texting scams, scammers use a person’s fear to pressure them into acting quickly. A common scenario of what this looks like is a scammer claiming to be a relative in an emergency situation and using AI to manipulate a voice recording, making the scam appear incredibly realistic.
“It can be a video of your grandchild, and it sounds like their voice,” Gunter says. “Allegedly, they might be calling because they need thousands of dollars sent through an app, like Cash App, wired to them or wired to an attorney representing them, because they claim they’ve been arrested while they’ve been traveling out of town,” Mason says.
Imposter scams, especially with advancement in AI, are some of the most believable scams in today’s digital age. If you’re receiving a call from someone claiming to be a loved one or trusted official, confirm the identity of the caller first by checking in with other family members or friends or reach out to the agency or organization directly.
What banks are doing to protect you
Banks, like the Tennessee Valley Federal Credit Union, are working around the clock to ensure your safety.
“We have some great technology going on behind the scenes that identifies unusual behavior, either on someone’s online account or with debit card activity…but in either case, our systems are familiar with your normal behavior,” Gunter says.
TVFCU has a variety of methods for protecting your account, like changing accounts or account numbers. They say their systems are familiar with your spending habits and behavior, like how often you access your online banking account and the types of transactions made.
Each financial institution handles fraud differently, but many will send you a call or text notifying you of an usual transaction.
Gunter says with new technology, they’re able to detect potential fraud first and contact the member before they even notice.
“Really, just them notifying us that it’s fraud and letting the investigation happen is all the hard work that the individual has to do,” she says.
If you’re concerned you or a loved one may be a victim of fraud, AARP offers various resources to seek help and prevent scams from happening.
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