Tasha Carter, from Florida’s Department of Financial Services, representing Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, covered many important bases regarding the fraudulent exploitation of senior citizens Wednesday morning at Operation S.A.F.E. The event was sponsored by the Villages Homeowners Association (VHA), at the Savannah Center. VHA president Fred Briggs welcomed Ms. Carter to the stage.
Representatives from all the local law enforcement agencies were on hand as well — to offer information and answer questions: The Lake, Marion and Sumter County Sheriff’s Offices; the Fruitland Park, Lady Lake and Wildwood Police Departments; Seniors vs. Crime, plus people from Senior Options.
Quoting Florida’s CFO Jeff Atwater, “Seniors contribute greatly to enriching our lives, culture and economy here in Florida — but unfortunately, it’s seniors who are often targeted for financial fraud and scams — with the aim of stealing their hard-earned money. Statistics indicate one out of every five adults age 65 or older has been the victim of a financial scam.”
Carter summed up her talk by reminding the audience: “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” and warning citizens to always be cautious, even suspicious, in any dealings where their money is involved.
“Why do crooks target seniors?” Carter asked. “A key reason is because seniors control 70 percent of the wealth in America — and the criminals want it.”
“Most seniors pride themselves on living independently and being self-reliant. They own their own homes and have accumulated a nest egg from a lifetime of working and saving; most have excellent credit, and because most grew up in kinder, simpler times, many tend to be polite and trusting.”
Criminals also know some seniors are less likely to report scams because they aren’t sure where to report the problem; some have impaired memories which make them poor witnesses, and they might be embarrassed to admit they have been duped.
“It’s not only strangers who scam seniors,” Carter asserted. “Of all reported senior fraud incidents, 79 percent have involved a family member; 49 percent involved a caregiver and 47 percent involved a trusted friend or neighbor.”
Estimates place annual losses incurred by senior fraud and scams at about $2.9 billion — but Carter emphasized senior crimes go vastly under-reported. “We think only about one in ten senior victims report their issues — so imagine how much money is really extorted or scammed from them!” she emphasized.
This is why Atwater, launched Operation S.A.F.E., which stands for Stop Adult Financial Exploitation.
Tasha Carter urged seniors to be firm in their dealings with strangers — and even with persons they know — in person, via phone and e-mail — and never hesitate to say ‘no’ if they don’t wish to do something.
“It’s OK to be rude,” Carter smiled. “Rude is OK — it’s OK to hang up or slam the door — you need to assert your rights and keep your finances safe.”
She outlined the psychology scam artists use. Some promise people enormous riches in lottery scams. For example: ‘You’ve won $20 million in the Jamaican lottery, but first you have to send us $20,000 to cover taxes and fees.’
Scammers may imply falsely they are employed by or affiliated with trusted organizations — perhaps your bank, your doctor’s office or a law enforcement agency — to gain potential victims’ trust. They often also imply a sense of urgency to get your data. ‘You’ve just won a free cruise, but I need your credit card number to pay the port charges now.’ ‘Your grandson was arrested in London and needs bail money. He needs you to send it immediately to a bank in the Philippines or Nigeria.’ They don’t want you to have time to check with your attorney or accountant, or just to think over what they’ve requested.
“No matter how preposterous things like this may sound, people often fall for these lines. No matter who calls,” Carter warned, “don’t give strangers your sensitive information — like social security, bank account or credit card numbers or your birth date. Ask to call them back, and check thoroughly before you write a check or give them any information.”
“You might be surprised how much personal info is available about everyone on the Internet, and how crooks can use it to empty our bank accounts or steal our identities. They even use devices to falsify caller I.D., so your phone might say ‘Bank of America,’ when it isn’t. Many scammers are very tech savvy — they use all sorts of ruses to get your money!”
They may take those pre-approved credit card offers and get a credit card in your name. They may file income tax with your social security number and collect a refund.
“Online dating is a scenario for crime. Surprisingly,” Carter revealed, “we’ve had the most fraud complaints about ChristianMingle.com, but all the romance and dating websites attract crooks as well as honest people. Match.com, eHarmony — all of them — it doesn’t happen over night. Cheats become your friends and gain your trust for weeks or even months before they ask you for money. So many single or lonely seniors fall for ‘romance scams’ — and some let their guard down more quickly if they think their new e-mail friends share their religious values. “
Common frauds targeting seniors include bogus charities; grandparent scams (where a family member claims to be in trouble); lottery and sweepstakes frauds (requiring us to wire money); investment and reverse mortgage scams; and home improvement fraud, where small, fly-by-night contractors ask for large sums of money up front and then never do the work.
Sumter County Sheriff’s detectives Michael Ross and Jeff Cohen, who specialize in fraud investigations, warned against callers claiming there’s a warrant out for your arrest; or that you missed jury duty, They described examples of phone, e-mail and fake contractor frauds victimizing Villagers. They urged residents to check with Seniors vs. Crime before doing business — in person or online. “They have extensive files of complaints about local contractors and even national companies,” detective Ross said, “and can alert us not to give our money to felons.”
“Some construction and pickup trucks employ magnetic signs,” Detective Cohen said. “This week they are plumbers, next week they’ll paint your house or re-pave your driveway. But in truth, they’ll change their signs and try to steal your money.”
Regarding identity theft, Carter told the audience not to carry social security or Medicare cards. “The government is working to create new PIN numbers for all of us to protect these vital statistics — but the project might take up to five years to complete, because millions of records are involved.”
She recommended cross-hatch shredders when disposing of sensitive documents. She also pointed out how important it is to be vigilant — to police all our monthly statements, line by line — from our banks, financial institutions and credit cards — to catch any fraudulent charges, withdrawals and duplicate entries.
Audience members thanked Carter and Sumter County detectives Cohen and Ross for their excellent presentations, and buttonholed agency representatives present with their questions.
To contact Florida’s consumer helpline — call 1-877-MY-FL-CFO (693-5236) orwww.MyFloridaCFO.com/Division/Consumers. Financial guidelines for veterans are available at www.MyFloridaCFO.com/YMM/FinancialFrontlines. Elder Options, funded through a grant from the Florida Department of Elder Affairs, helpline is 1-800 96-ELDER: agingresources.org and [email protected]