Carson City Sheriff's Office provides Elder Fraud and Exploitation Information
Each year, millions of elderly Americans fall victim to some type of financial fraud or confidence scheme, including romance, lottery, and sweepstakes scams — just to name a few.
Seniors are often targeted because they tend to be trusting and polite. They also usually have financial savings, own a home, and have good credit — all of which make them attractive to scammers.
Additionally, seniors may be less inclined to report fraud because they don’t know how or may be too ashamed of being scammed. They might also be concerned that their relatives will lose confidence in their abilities to manage their own financial affairs. And when an elderly victim does report a crime, they may be unable to supply detailed information to investigators.
With the elderly population growing and seniors racking up more than $3 billion in losses annually, elder fraud has remained a growing problem.
Some ways of protecting yourself and your personal identifying information include:
DO NOT PROVIDE YOUR NAME, DATE OF BIRTH, OR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER OVER THE PHONE. GOVERNMENT ENTITIES OR LEGITIMATE COMPANIES WILL NEVER ASK YOU FOR THIS INFORMATION OVER THE PHONE.
DO NOT PROVIDE YOUR DEBIT/CREDIT CARD INFORMATION OVER THE PHONE. GOVERNMENT ENTITIES OR LEGITIMATE COMPANIES WILL NEVER ASK YOU FOR THIS INFORMATION OVER THE PHONE.
DO NOT PURCHASE GIFT CARDS TO PAY FOR BILLS YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH.
DO NOT PROVIDE ANYONE WITH GIFT CARD NUMBERS.
DO NOT PURCHASE BITCOIN OR ANY FORM OF CRYPTOCURRENCY AS MEANS TO PAY BILLS.
DO NOT ALLOW ANYONE TO HAVE REMOTE ACCESS TO YOUR COMPUTER OR CELL PHONE DEVICES.
DO NOT SHIP CASH OR ANY OTHER FORM OF CURRENCY THROUGH USPS, UPS, FEDEX, ECT.
If you fall victim to fraud, please call the Carson City Sheriff’s Office at the phone numbers listed below, notify your financial institution, and file a report with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) https://www.ic3.gov/Home/EF.
If you are interested in hosting a fraud presentation, please contact Detective Ramon Marquez at 775-283-7855 or 775-400-7787.