World Elder Abuse Awareness Day: Tips for Fraud Protection and Prevention

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 16:40:19 -0400

Have you or a loved one been contacted by someone claiming affiliation with a government agency?

In commemoration of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on June 14, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is highlighting the types of scams affecting the elderly community.

Older adults are targeted with misinformation daily. In 2022, older adults reported losing more than $186 million to government imposter scams https://rly.pt/ImposterScams

Criminals often see older adults as easy targets due to their perceived vulnerability and trusting natures. To combat this issue, VA is collaborating with other federal government agencies, through increased awareness and proactive measures https://rly.pt/ScamAwareness on an initiative to help protect older adults by sharing information on how to identify and report scams.

Fraudsters can use a variety of tactics, including aggressive calling, texting, emails, websites, messages on social media and deceptive letters to pressure senior citizens into providing their personal information such as social security numbers, bank account details, login credentials, medical records, or credit card information. They can also aim to scam the elderly community by:

 Pretending to represent an official government agency or someone they trust.
 Mentioning there’s a problem or offering a prize.
 Pressuring them to act immediately.
 Telling them to pay in a specific way (i.e. gift cards, PayPal, etc.) or provide
personal information.

Common government imposter scams involve fraudsters pretending to be from the Social Security Administration (SSA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Medicare, VA, utility companies, or even charities. These scams are a growing threat and can result in significant financial loss, identity theft, and emotional distress. To avoid being a victim of government imposter scams and other fraud schemes, it is important to follow these helpful tips:

 Hang up or ignore suspicious calls or messages. Government agencies will never demand immediate action or payment. If in doubt, contact the government agency directly using their official contact information.
 Do not click on links in unexpected emails, texts, or social media messages. Government websites always use a .gov domain.
 Do not respond to, pay, or share personal or financial information with anyone via social media, email, or the telephone.
 Avoid sharing personally identifiable information (PII) (e.g., eBenefits, VA.gov, or any other VA login credentials, Social Security Numbers, Claim Numbers, mother’s maiden name, etc.) or verification codes with anyone.
 Be wary of requests to move money from bank, investment, or retirement accounts.
 Download strong antivirus software, utilize multi-factor authentication, and frequently change and maintain strong passwords.
 Report instanceshttps://rly.pt/ReportingScams of suspicious activity and fraud through ReportFraud.ftc.gov

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is a reminder of the Department’s collective responsibility to safeguard older adults from scams. VA is committed to educating Veterans, family members, survivors, and caregivers about ongoing fraud threats, especially those targeting the elderly community.

To stay updated on the latest scams, visit How to Avoid Imposter Scams https://rly.pt/AvoidingScams VA also provides comprehensive fraud prevention resources for Veterans https://rly.pt/FraudPrevention
Veterans who suspect they have experienced fraud involving their VA Benefits can contact the VA Benefits Hotline at [login to see] . Veterans can also learn more about fraud prevention by visiting the Protecting Veterans from Fraud webpage https://rly.pt/ProtectingVeteransfromFraud

Office of Financial Management, Benefits Delivery Protection & Remediation

FTC Data Spotlight: New insights about imposter scams

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know that every year we report on the top scams people tell us about. And that we take a deeper dive into the data through our Data Spotlight reports. A new Data Spotlight about business and government imposters shines a light on the top imposter scams.

Response by MAJ Dale E. Wilson, Ph.D. made Jun 15 at 2024 1:34 AM

MAJ Dale E. Wilson, Ph.D. — Sat, 15 Jun 2024 01:34:38 -0400

I report at least a dozen phishing scams I get via email daily . . .

Response by SGT Ruben Lozada made Jun 16 at 2024 3:44 PM

SGT Ruben Lozada — Sun, 16 Jun 2024 15:44:43 -0400

Good afternoon. Excellent post. Thank you for sharing this on RP.

Response by Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth made Jun 17 at 2024 8:34 AM

Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 08:34:25 -0400

We need to make sure the White House Staff gets this notice!

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 18 at 2024 12:07 PM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 12:07:30 -0400

Just as MAJ Dale E. Wilson, Ph.D. says, easily a dozen or more a day found in my inbox. There's no point in trying to report it, who's going to investigate it all? DO NOT click on anything you have not requested and recognize.....NOTHING....delete that garbage TWICE. Get it out of the trash bin too.....scramble those bits permanently!

Response by Maj Bruce Miller made Jun 18 at 2024 4:46 PM

Maj Bruce Miller — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 16:46:32 -0400

Scammers and phishers are getting more sophisticated and with AI, likely you won't be able to tell the difference. Some hard rules to follow to protect identity and from getting scammed....
1. Never answer your phone if you do not recognize the caller or caller ID shows it to be a business you do business with. Let it go to voice mail and listen. If its someone you know or wish to talk to, then pick up. But picking up a scam call will allow them to put you on their 'human voice' list and sell that list....and then the scamming/marketing calls will come in earnest.
2. NEVER click on any link you get in e-mail, including e-mail addresses you know. If you want to check out the claims/offers/warnings the e-mail is making, go to the web site in question on another browser window you open.
3. Never use a debit card on-line....use a credit card dedicated only to on-line purchases. We use a Discover card we got expressly for this purpose and put a $5,000 max charge limit. That way the very worst we'd be out is $5,000. But credit cards and debit cards are treated entirely differently for security purposes.
4. Use the lock-down feature most banks, credit unions and brokerages are offering today. This prevents any transfer of $$ out of your account. You may apply some exceptions for most today, to include checks written, bill pay to bonafied creditors, regular systematic payments out of the accounts that have been prearranged. To transfer $$ including things like IRA RMD withdrawals or Qualified Charitable distributions requires unlocking the account, making the transfer and then relocking it. A bit of a pain but worth the peace of mind.

Response by SSG Roger Ayscue made Jun 19 at 2024 10:51 PM

SSG Roger Ayscue — Wed, 19 Jun 2024 22:51:36 -0400

Someone needs to do something about these commercials on daytime television that encourage seniors to change their Medicare coverage because they might get this or that. Commercials that look like they are official from the US Government but are at the bottom of the screen in letters that are so small that it is nearly impossible to see or read. Also, letters that say "Response Required" or "Final Notice" or "Last Chance to Update Benifits".
Marketing companies and Advertising Executives should be ashamed of their practices which prey on vulnerable seniors.

Response by CPT Patrick Moonan made Jun 20 at 2024 9:19 AM

CPT Patrick Moonan — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 09:19:33 -0400

Who is protecting the Veterans from the VA? They are givien out Veterans Medicare # without thier knowlege or consent.to third party Medical providers

Response by AN Ron Wright made Jun 20 at 2024 10:43 AM

AN Ron Wright — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 10:43:33 -0400

Can you send this to Jill bYden

Response by SPC Matt Ovaska made Jun 20 at 2024 12:42 PM

SPC Matt Ovaska — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 12:42:45 -0400

The VA is scamming vets every day. Doesn't matter how old they are.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 22 at 2024 1:11 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 22 Jun 2024 13:11:28 -0400

I've blocked over 100 numbers in the last 10 days. The calls come in bursts of 10 or 20 at a time. One day last week I got 26 calls in 7 minutes.

Response by SPC Joel Carter Sr made Jun 30 at 2024 4:23 AM

SPC Joel Carter Sr — Sun, 30 Jun 2024 04:23:59 -0400

elder abuse is getting way out of hand,and the government and the v.a. dont care.

Response by TSgt Ken Vandevoort made Jul 14 at 2024 12:10 AM

TSgt Ken Vandevoort — Sun, 14 Jul 2024 00:10:15 -0400

I don't answer my phone if a name doesn't pop up. If it is a real call, they can leave a message. They never do.

Response by A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney made Aug 30 at 2024 8:50 PM

A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 20:50:05 -0400

And The North Las Vegas VA Health Care Facilities
Must Be One Of Their Leaders, SOB'S Damned Near Killed Me,
~ LITERALLY ~