How to protect yourself and loved ones from scams targeting senior citizens

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Elder fraud schemes lead to more than $3 billion in losses annually, according to the FBI. That’s why the agency is teaming up with health insurance provider Highmark to teach people what to look out for .

FBI agent Kevin Rojek says no one is immune to these schemes.

“Even a former FBI director was a target of an elder fraud scheme,” said Rojek. “Make no mistake, these criminals are after one thing: your hard-earned money.”

Scams targeting people over 60 years old have been around for a while, but now they’re on the rise, says supervisory special agent Brooklynn Riordan.

“In 2021 and 2022, FBI reporting indicated that loss amounts for victims over 60 years of age rose 84%,” Riordan said.

"Our senior citizen population tends to be a more vulnerable victim group. They are more trusting of individuals. They tend to have financial resources available to them. Maybe they've lost a spouse, and they're looking for companionship."

Riordan says there are a number of elder fraud schemes they want people to be aware of and red flags to watch out for.

“We can’t possibly tackle this all on our own. So we need individuals to be aware of what scammers do, to be able to protect yourself and your loved ones from financial fraud,” Riordan said.

Romance: Scammers pose as interested singles on dating sites.

Tech support: Criminals pose as tech support reps, offering to fix a nonexistent computer problem. As victims reveal more information over the phone, the scammers gain remote access to personal information.

Grandparent scam: A criminal poses as a relative claiming to be in jail or in danger, in immediate need of money.

Sweepstakes, lottery and charity: Scammers claim to work for legitimate charity organizations to gain trust, or they claim the victim has won a lottery or a prize that they can collect for a fee.

As part of their collaborative effort to help reduce elder scams, the FBI and Highmark are releasing informational packets and videos to make people aware of what they should look out for.

Riordan says there are some simple things people can do to protect themselves.

How to protect yourself from financial scams:
—Search for contact information for the person calling.
—Ask questions during the call.
—Resist pressure to act quickly.
—Be cognizant of unsolicited phone calls and text messages.
—Don't click any links in unsolicited emails that come from people you don't recognize.

“Never ever should you provide your personal identifying information, your financial information, your credit card information — including PINs, logins — to anyone that you don’t trust,” she said.

The FBI believes 50% to 75% of the fraud that occurs goes unreported, says Riordan. Anyone who believes that they or someone they know is a victim of an elder fraud scam should call police.