Plus there’s a new twist. Tell the senior citizens of your acquaintance to beware.
Lanning Taliaferro, Patch Staff
Posted Mon, Apr 19, 2021 at 2:44 pm ET
RAMAPO, NY — A Ramapo resident was recently the victim of the now-classic grandparent scam, police said.
The con artist took a significant amount from a senior citizen who fell for the tale of a grandchild in distress, police said. “Many seniors are not on social media and may not be familiar with these scams, so please share this information with those you know.”
The basic scam operates thusly: It starts with a call from someone pretending to be your grandchild. They might speak softly or make an excuse for why they sound different. They’ll say they’re in trouble, need bail, or need money for some reason. The fake grandchild will also beg you to keep this a secret — maybe they’re “under a gag order,” or they don’t want their parents to know. Sometimes, they might put another scammer on the line who pretends to be a police officer or a lawyer.https://8a16ef033de68541d69a1e757bda82ed.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
There’s a new twist, Ramapo police said. Instead of asking you to buy gift cards or wire money (both signs of a scam), the scammer tells you someone will come to your door to pick up cash. Once you hand it over, your money is gone. But you might get more calls to send money by wire transfer or through the mail.
To avoid these scams and protect your personal information:Subscribe
- Take a breath and resist the pressure to pay. Get off the phone and call or text the person who (supposedly) called. If you can’t reach them, check with a family member to get the real story. Even though the scammer said not to.
- Don’t give your address, personal information, or cash to anyone who contacts you. And anyone who asks you to pay by gift card or money transfer is a scammer. Always.
- If you are on social media, check your social media privacy settings and limit what you share publicly. Even if your settings are on private, be careful about what personal identifiers you post.
Also, Common Scams and Frauds offers these resources and tips:
- Report telephone scams to the Federal Trade Commission, either online or by phone at 1-877-382-4357. This is the primary government agency that collects scam complaints.
- Report all robocalls and unwanted telemarketing calls to the Do Not Call Registry.
- Report caller ID spoofing to the Federal Communications Commission either online or by phone at 1-888-225-5322.###/liyour state consumer protection office. Some consumer protection offices help residents resolve consumer problems.
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