David Burdette, a retired executive in Concord, N.H., narrowly missed becoming a victim of financial fraud last summer after criminals were apparently able to crack the password to an online account that he used to manage his telephone service.
Mr. Burdette, 63, said it took months to change various account numbers and reset passwords after the episode, which left him wary of the perils of the Internet. “My level of paranoia has certainly increased,” he said.
Alerting consumers to fraudulent schemes targeting older Americans is the goal of a new interactive Fraud Watch Network map created by the advocacy group AARP.
The national map, which became available this week, follows creation of the group’s fraud awareness campaign last fall. The goal is to help consumers more easily track illegal schemes that target them for financial fraud and identity theft, said Nancy LeaMond, executive vice president at AARP. “It’s to make sure that people are alerted to scams that are out there,” she said.
The online map lets you click on your state and see notices about fraudulent activity in your area, both from consumers reporting their personal experiences and from state authorities. Arizona’s attorney general, for instance, warns of “medical alert” scams that are now circulating in several regions, targeting older people in particular.
Reports on the map include one from a woman in Tennessee who received emails telling her she was about to be evicted, and asking her to click on an attachment. Another in Texas learned that someone had created an online Social Security account in her mother’s name, and had redirected her monthly payment to another account.
Older Americans are increasingly using the Internet. According to the Pew Charitable Trusts, 56 percent of Americans aged 65 and older are online, and more than half of those who are online use social network sites. That means schemes targeting older people, and the services they use, also are moving online. “The Internet is providing another opportunity for people to be scammed,” said Maggie Flowers, senior program manager at the National Council on Aging.
Older Americans may be attractive targets because they have accumulated nest eggs for retirement, or have substantial equity built up in their homes. “They have access to resources and funds they’ve saved for their whole lives,” said Nora Eisenhower, assistant director at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Office for Older Americans. “You’re a target because you’ve lived a fiscally responsible life.”
In Mr. Burdette’s case, he learned that he was nearly a victim when he got a call from his bank, asking if he had authorized a transfer of funds to an overseas account. He hadn’t, so the transfer was canceled. But it had been a close call, he learned. Before the criminals contacted his bank to request the transfer, they used their online access to his telephone account to activate a feature that lets customers forward calls to another phone number. When the bank initially called to verify the transaction, the call went to the criminal’s telephone number, instead of to Mr. Burdette. The scheme was thwarted when a suspicious bank employee contacted Mr. Burdette on another telephone number.
Mr. Burdette said he was considering becoming a volunteer with AARP to help advise others about avoiding fraud and staying secure online. While he still is not sure how the criminals obtained his bank account number, he said he realized that his online password should have been stronger. “People need to pay attention to what they’re using for passwords, and they shouldn’t use the same one for multiple vendors,” he said.
Here are some additional questions about online fraud:
■ How can I help an older relative stay safe online?
Advise that person not to open emails or attachments from unknown senders, and to avoid clicking on “pop up” alerts, which may actually be a way for malicious software to make its way onto the computer. People who are under stress from events in their life — like illness, a job loss or the death of a loved one — should be particularly cautious about responding to unsolicited offers or inquiries, said Ms. LeaMond of AARP.
■ How can I choose a safe password?
Passwords should be at least eight characters long and contain both upper- and lowercase letters as well as numbers and symbols. If the password must be written down, security experts recommend that it be kept in a safe place — and ideally, not labeled a password.
■ Where can I go for help, if I think I’ve encountered a scam?
You can complain to the consumer bureau of your state attorney general’s office; a list by state is available at the National Association of Attorneys General.
The National Council on Aging lists tips for avoiding fraud, and you can file a complaint about a financial service with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. More resources are available at the federal stopfraud.gov site.
