Smartphones, Cybercrime and Other Scams on the Rise

In 2019, more than 4 in 5 adults in the U.S. report that they constantly check their email, texts, and social media accounts, according to a recent APA report. Many, if not most, scams today start with a phone, an email, by fax, a letter, or a text on your cell phone.  If you do not recognize the caller, it is best to disregard the call, hanging up.

Cybercrime and other scams are on the rise. While the elderly are among those who spend less time on the internet, they are still at risk of becoming victims of identity theft, Medicare fraud, financial scams, and other types of cybercrime. Scams targeting the elderly are presented in multiple forms and can go unnoticed by seniors with the less online experience.

Elderly scams occur far more frequently than you might expect — seniors account for more than $3 billion in losses annually, making elder fraud a growing problem. Seniors are often targeted because of their lack of digital literacy, their trusting and polite nature, and their tendency to have financial savings and good credit, the FBI reports.

The FBI also notes that seniors may be less inclined to report fraud, either because they aren’t sure how or because they might be concerned family members will think they can no longer manage their own financial affairs.

It’s crucial to keep an eye out for aging family members who might be susceptible to these elderly scams. Learn about common types of elder fraud and how to spot them, how to improve your loved one’s online literacy, steps to avoid elder fraud, and what to do if your loved one becomes a scam victim.

Here are five common scams targeting the elderly:

1. Fake telemarketers. Calls from unfamiliar numbers, where people ask your loved one for personal information, are prominent red flags. Fake telemarketing calls might claim you won a prize, you owe money, you need to confirm your sensitive information, and more.
2. Medical identity theft. It is not unusual for a health insurance representative to ask for private information. This may make it difficult to differentiate between a legitimate call and a scam. A scammer posing as an insurance or Medicare representative may ask for private information, convince your loved one they missed a payment, or that their information did not save.
3. Robocall scams. Automated messages with alerts of missed or late account payments, asking for Social Security information or other recorded messages are designed to cause stress and panic. This might make your aging family member want to take action.
4. Coronavirus scams.  The pandemic has made it easier for scammers to capitalize on people’s worries and desire for information.  Scammers may call your loved one with information regarding the relief check from the government. Criminals might also offer vaccination appointments or claim to be from a government organization.
5. Other scams include asking for donations. If you are unsure, always check trusted sites, such as coronavirus.gov, for accurate information. Many calls come from people claiming to be from the government, the Social Security Administration, or a law enforcement agency. This is not the way these agencies contact people. Hang up on calls from any of these phony callers. Scammers are targeting people with the opportunity to participate in bogus clinical trials. We see in the news that companies like Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson, and Johnson are conducting clinical trials. They do not charge people to participate in these trials. So if a caller asks you for money, hang up the phone or ignore the text.

Four tips for teaching online literacy to elders

1. Write it down. Retaining new information is easier when you have reference materials. Placing a sheet of key terms and step-by-step directions near your loved one’s computer, tablet, or cell phone is a good way to help seniors feel more comfortable when using unfamiliar technology and navigating the internet.
2. Teach the value. Explaining the value of online literacy helps your loved one be more inclined to learn, making them less likely to be a scam victim.
3. Keep it simple. Provide simple directions and eliminate jargon to make the process easy and more enjoyable. Try to explain ideas without using technical terms to clearly get the point across.
4. Protect their information. Maybe you have noticed that your loved one uses the same or similar password for every account. Help them understand the importance of creating strong passwords as a valuable elderly fraud prevention tool. Strong passwords and two-factor authentication add layers of protection to sensitive information.

Here are some ways you can check out whether it is a legitimate call or not.

AT&T

AT&T offers Call Protect, which will display a “V” (for verified) on your caller ID for calls considered legitimate. It will also block potentially fraudulent calls by giving a busy signal. You’ll still get spam calls, but your caller ID will display Suspected Spam and a category like Political, Nonprofit, Telemarketer, Survey, or Robocaller.

How to Turn On Call Protect
On the web, go to your myAT&T account overview. Find the My Digital Phone section and choose Check or Manage Voicemail & Features > Phone Features > Call Protect, then follow the prompts to turn on Call Protect.

T-Mobile

T-Mobile offers two free anti-robocall tools: Scam ID and Scam Block. Scam ID identifies and tags suspicious calls. T-Mobile One customers automatically get Scam ID. Other customers can activate it free. Scam Block is a more robust free tool, which, as the name implies, blocks calls before they ring. But customers need to activate this service.

How to Turn On Scam ID
Dial #ONI# (#664#), then press the call button.

How to Turn On Scam Block
Dial #ONB# (#662#), then press the call button.

Verizon

Verizon automatically enrolls eligible customers in the free version of Call Filter, which detects spam and blocks high-risk calls. This option is available on a wide variety of phones. See the full list of compatible devices.

Verizon also offers a more robust paid anti-robocall tool called Call Filter Plus, which can block unwanted calls. It costs $3 per month per line for up to two lines. It’s $8 per month for three or more lines. Most Verizon phones come preloaded with the Call Filter app, which is necessary to activate Call Filter Plus. If your phone isn’t preloaded with the app, it’s available for download at the app store.

How to Activate Call Filter Plus
Android: Open Call Filter app, then tap Account > Subscription Status > Subscribe Now.

iPhone: Open Call Filter app, then tap Get Call Filter > Subscribe.

Online: Go to your account’s My Verizon section. Go to the Add-ons and apps page in My Verizon and select Manage Call Filter > Manage Add-on. Select which line you want to manage, and select the Call Filter Plus bubble under Choose Your Call Filter product. Choose whether to apply Call Filter to All eligible lines or choose Selected lines. You can get Call Filter Plus (Multiline) for accounts with three or more eligible lines for $8 per month per account. Click Continue > Confirm when the confirmation screen appears.

My Verizon App: Open the My Verizon app. Tap the menu in the top left > Plans & Devices, then scroll down and tap Explore Add-ons. Scroll down to find Call Filter and tap Learn More, then choose a line to manage and tap Enroll > Call Filter Plus > Next. To sign up for Call Filter Plus (Single line), tap the $2.99/mo. per line Call Filter Plus option. To sign up for Call Filter Plus (Multiline) (which requires three or more eligible lines), tap the $7.99/mo. for three or more lines Call the Filter Plus option. Review your changes and tap “I accept the Terms & Conditions,” then tap Confirm.

Add More Protection

Downloading a third-party call-blocking app or signing up for your phone company’s separate robocall blocking service could provide even more protection.

Some of these apps charge a fee while others offer a free subscription. But some “free” apps are free only for an introductory period and will automatically begin charging you a fee unless you cancel your subscription before the free trial ends.

These beefed-up services use algorithms, lists of blacklisted numbers, and proprietary technology to filter out suspicious calls and can supplement the call-blocking and labeling functionality of STIR/SHAKEN. They also give you more control to manually choose which calls can come through and which ones to block.

But you should consider potential privacy implications before downloading third-party apps, warns Maureen Mahoney, a policy analyst at Consumer Reports.

“There are few restrictions on what these companies can do with your data, so keep in mind that you’re trusting developers with sensitive information about your calls,” she says.

For even more privacy protection, there are premium services that offer tools such as access to a virtual private network (VPN) that can safeguard your data on public WiFi networks.