While financial fraud can happen to anyone, older adults face unique challenges when it comes to scams, which are increasingly common among that age group.
Tech support scams were reported to be most common among this demographic, followed by personal data breaches and confidence and romance scams, where the scam artist first gains trust before moving on to the topic of money. The FBI notes that older adults make an attractive target because they usually have savings, a home and other assets. They may be more trusting and less likely to report being scammed.
Rhodes also suggests using a credit card when you shop online, as credit cards contain built-in fraud prevention tools such as the ability to dispute charges. If you send money directly from a bank account, it can be harder to recover.Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of the Identity Theft Resource Center, says to always “go to the source” if you receive an unsolicited text, email or phone call claiming to be a familiar entity like your bank.
“We had a panelist talk about experiencing embarrassment and shame around falling for a scam. She didn’t want to tell her adult daughter so she told the local CVS pharmacy checkout person,” Patskanick says. If community members are equipped to respond and follow up, then they can serve as a helpful resource when it comes to fraud prevention, she says.