Older adults are often the targets of consumer fraud and scams. Protect yourself!

• Don’t fall for anything that sounds too good to be true, such as a free vacation; sweepstakes prizes; cures for cancer and arthritis; a low-risk, high yield investment scheme.
• Never give your credit card, phone card, Social Security, or bank account number to anyone over the phone. It’s illegal for telemarketers to ask for these numbers to verify a prize or gift.
• Don’t let anyone rush you into signing anything, such as an insurance policy, a sales agreement, a contract. Read it carefully and have someone you trust check it over.
• Beware of individuals claiming to represent companies, consumer organizations, or government agencies that offer to recover lost money from fraudulent telemarketers for a fee.
• Beware of 900 numbers. Remember, if you call a 900 number to claim a “prize”, you end up paying for the call. Make sure you understand all charges before making the call.
• Look closely at offers that come in the mail. Con artists often use offi cial-looking forms and language and bold graphics to lure victims.
• If you receive items in the mail that you didn’t order, you are under no obligation to pay for them. Throw them out, return them, or keep them.
• Beware of cheap home repair work that would otherwise be expensive. The con artist may do only part of the work, use shoddy materials and untrained workers, or simply take your deposit and never return.
• Never pay with cash. Never accept offers from drive-up workers who “just happen” to be in the neighborhood. If they’re reliable, they’ll come back after you check them out.
• Report con games to the police, your city or state consumer protection office, district attorney’s office, or a consumer advocacy group. Don’t be embarrassed. Some very, very astute people have been taken in by these pros.
• Avoid “vishing”. Dubbed “vishing”, the fraud sees randomly dialed users phoned by an automated system to be told that their credit card has been used illegally. The ploy them requires their victims to dial a fake 800 number, which accesses a system requesting they confi rm their account details and credit card number. Armed with this information, criminals then empty the victim’s account by buying products and services on the card.

Identity Theft
The National Better Business Bureau web site offers information about preventing and dealing with identity theft.
178356