"Age Associated Financial Vulnerability" - The Scamming of Seniors
 

We have all heard about the never-ending scams that target seniors.

We all think that it could not possibly happen to us.

Or perhaps we know someone it has happened to and we could not believe it happened because the person seemed so together and competent.

Science is starting to look at the brain and finding differences in those who fall victim to scams, even though there are no obvious signs of approaching dementia. In fact, many of those who are scammed are highly intelligent people who have had very successful careers.

The article says that people over 50 hold 83% of the wealth, with those in their 70s and 80s having the highest median net worth. Prime targets. Seniors are losing billions of that wealth to scams.

If this is a topic that has mystified you with disbelief or if you just want to know what science is saying now and if you have the time, you might want to hear or read what is being said in the link below. (It is a bit lengthy, but something to think about.)

Meanwhile, please do not answer your phone if you do not know who is calling. Or if you do answer and the pitch starts in, hang up.

The latest scam I have heard about is to make the victim think their Social Security is going to be cut off because their number has been used in a crime, like money-laundering or some such thing. There is another scam that tries to get the new Medicare number by offering to sell medical supplies at a deal.

Scammers are quite adept in keeping their victim's brain in a fevered pitch by tapping into paranoia and fear, once they get hold. Sometimes people are sent to buy thousands of dollars in gift cards to give the numbers to the scammers. It would seem that would send up a big red flag, but it often works.

On and on it goes. Scams will never stop. Also, once someone has been scammed, they are targeted repeatedly.

Anyway, I just thought I would pass this information along, in case it might help or interest some of us seniors, or those responsible for aging parents or friends. This is from Marketplace on NPR.

Here is the link:

Does aging make us more susceptible to financial scams? - Marketplace

Great information.. Thanks.

I agree great information. My wife happened to be switching channels and came across a program on Dr. Phil, it was the story of an elderly widowed man who fell in love with a woman he never met. She kept asking for money so she could get free of Germany and come to the states to have a relationship. Some $155,000 later she never did come to the states but kept wanting more money. We couldn’t believe the guy was in denial and it took lots of proof presented by Dr. Phil that they guy was scammed.

I'm not criticizing, but, when I read about some of the outrageous scams like these, it makes me wonder that, if I ever get to the point where I would fall for them, what difference does it make? I may as well just lose my money. But, your advice to just hang up the phone seems ridiculously inadequate. Is someone who would buy hundreds of gift cards and give them to a stranger really going to take your advice to just hang up the phone?

Thank you for posting this thread, Boomer. Two days ago I received the Social Security scam call on my cell phone VM. Weird, because I rarely use that line. Anyway, the jargon was a little off. "This is the Department of Social Security. We are suspending your Social Security number..." It was a robocall as the message started in the middle of the spiel, then repeated from the beginning. Anyway it was well done enough to fool someone so I reported it with the phone number used even though it might be fake. The Tennessee accent matched the Tennessee area code.

A few years ago an extremely successful businessman friend of mine was taken in by a call that his grandson had been in a car accident, was hospitalized and needed money. He sent the caller a few thousand dollars. They must have been very convincing because this man is sharp!

I had someone call me last year, saying "is that you? It's me, Bobby! I need help!" At first I thought hey maybe it's someone so upset they misdialed whoever they were really needing to talk to. So I asked who it was...

"grandma, you don't recognize my voice?"

He got a few (as in two) choice words from me, ending in the word "off."

I have no children, therefore - no grandchildren.

The IRS scam calls requesting credit card or gift cards numbers by some person speaking English as a second, third or fourth language are hysterical. Fake IRS Scam Caller Accidentally Calls A Talk Show Host - YouTube

This "Can you hear me?" trick is vicious! Beware new "can you hear me" scam - CBS News

I used to pick up and hang up quickly to stop the damn ringing but have learned not to pick up if I do not recognize the phone number. Unfortunately sometimes I need to pick up an unknown number as I am expecting a delivery truck, a physician's office callback or such. The robot seem to know I am vulnerable as inevitably I get junk calls from appropriate area codes at such times. My picking up of course means the calls will keep coming. Fall for This Simple Phone Scam? (You'''ll Be a Target Forever) | Inc.com

No children that you know about.


Oh wait, that only applies...to us guys. :1rotfl:

Hah! Grandpa is that YOU???

Hi retiredguy,
You are right about my advice to not answer or hang up as being inadequate — though ‘woefully’ inadequate might have been a better phrase. But, that’s OK. I knew what you meant. :)
- - - - -
There is a lot to this brain science thing discussed in the link I added to my earlier post. What is really scary is that writing off the susceptibility to being scammed as a sign of dementia is to dismiss much of what is happening with the ever growing onslaught of scams. Many, many of those scammed are highly functioning seniors with no signs of dementia.

I have read other articles about the hijacking of the amygdala, a part of the brain that has to do with our emotions.

The goal of a scammer is to get a grip on the amygdala to elicit an emotional response: Must act immediately! Get a deal! Rescue someone! Rescue your computer from having been hacked! Fear! Paranoia! Anger! Romance!

Maybe advice should include to be aware of quick, new, emotional responses, slam on the brakes, and let critical thinking skills kick in.

Another aspect of scamming potential — those cruel in-person scams. One night at LSL, I observed a young woman chatting up a much older gentleman while in line. They were obviously strangers to each other. She was so persistent in trying to connect with him. Something about it was making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I continued to observe as the line moved along. But I then realized he was suspicious of her motives, too. Good for him! I did not have to rescue him. :)

I was there! I saw her also.:ohdear:

I sometimes pick up and disconnect quickly. Now you all are saying the computer at the caller's end of the line registers our number for future use. But what about the advice to simply not answer? What good does that do since the call goes to voice mail. The computer would still detect that it's a "live" number, wouldn't it?

Internet Scaming
 

There are 2 scams which I just noticed and are probably aimed at Seniors. The first is if you see a $1.00 charge on your credit card. It may be to test to see if you are watching you credit bills and if not you may start to see strange higher billings for other services and the $1.00 will be a scam as a subscription to something and you will receive charges in the future for this not approved for a subscription to something. Call the company and cancel immediately. The second is uploading. You are subscribing to a service and out of the blue you are seeing new charges on your bill for that service but higher charges for add ons you never wanted or specifically agreed to. Another is to add new subscriptions to your charge accounts under the same general name but new company names added to the basic to tie in to the original basic name. NET: Keep a close eye on any charges to you credit card account.:MOJE_whot: