A spike in fraudulent crimes against senior citizens is raising concern, as the criminals are finding new ways of targeting and stealing from their victims.
In addition, using social media as intel in finding new avenues to entice the victim requiring money.
The criminals are set up in offices across the world functioning as “boiler room” operations 24-7, 365 days a year, looking to steal billions of dollars from Americans over the phone or the internet.
These digital thieves are not only smart and sophisticated, but they are also organized. Author and CEO of Protect Now LLC.com, Robert Siciliano, sheds light on just how advanced these crooks have become. He says they are using AI to clean up their “scammer grammar” so you cannot always rely on broken English or grammatical errors like you could before. “What you really have to look for, fundamentally: is there urgency here? Is somebody in distress? Is there some type of financial transaction that I need to make for my loved one- to relieve them of whatever situation that might be in?” Siciliano said.
He said hundreds of thousands of these offices are located all over the world, with many of them operating from Southeast Asia. “The scammers are sitting in front of computers and in phone banks, based all over the world- this is their job- many of the perpetrators of these scams are victims of human trafficking, sending emails and text messages with a gun to their head being forced to carry out these crimes.” Siciliano suspects various international governments are also behind the crimes.
The author and CEO of the Protect Now has followed fraudulent scammer activity and crimes for decades. He says it is best to have an additional set of eyes when faced with a potential fraud online or via text over the phone. “Call your attorney, call your kids, your parents, your spouse, do not ever navigate these things on your own! Somebody who has your back to help you reconcile whether it is real or fake.” Siciliano warned.
Seniors can learn more and participate in online classes by going to AARP’s website: Seniorplanet.org to educate themselves against this criminal activity and protect their financial future. Also, be aware information on social media sites is out there for all to see and can potentially be used as intel to entice someone into believing a fraudulent message.