Unfortunately there are far too many types of frauds to list here. Among the worst of these fraudsters are scum-of-the-earth characters who target seniors and steal their money. There are so many of these unscrupulous fraudsters because the potential victims are often easy marks and taking their money is more profitable than earning a legitimate income.
Frauds are often not realized until after some money has been paid to the fraudster by the unsuspecting victim, and the fraudster then disappears from sight. The felon and the money are almost impossible to trace and there is little chance of restitution.
The children of such vulnerable seniors would be wise to monitor their elderly parents’ activities that appear suspect and involving significant sums of money. These schemers are surreptitious in their methods and execute their dirty deeds quickly to avoid detection.
To demonstrate how these dastardly denizens target seniors, a couple of brief examples might be in order.
Among the many telephone scams is one referred to as the “Grandparents.” The fraudster contacts the victim by phone and pretends to be a grandchild desperately in need of money for covert legal, medical or other emergency. They are not to tell the supposed grandson’s parents as they would be really angry at him for getting into trouble. He needs the money immediately and it is to be wired to a given account number asap.
No doubt this “Grandparents” scheme seems preposterous but be aware that these scammers are expert at what they do. We have a friend who received such a telephone solicitation. She said the scammer was very convincing and almost made his case. Fortunately, our friend caught on to the scheme and quickly ended the telephone call.
Another popular scam is a phone call from a swindler pretending to be an agent with Revenue Canada. This caller claims to have audited past income tax submissions and the victim is owing back taxes. Consequently the taxpayer must pay the amount owing immediately or the RCMP would be at their door to arrest them within the week. The amount owing is to be paid by electronic transfer to a supposed Revenue Canada account number to clear the matter quickly without penalty.
Again, many of the fraud schemes like the above appear to be absurd. But these unconscionable scammers are very good at what they do and play on the naïveté of elderly persons who are not as sharp as they once were.
If these frauds and others like them appear to be unbelievable, then regard this fact. In 2022, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police reported more than $9.2 million was lost to emergency scams. This was an increase of $2.4 million over the previous year. One might observe that fraud is a fast growing malpractice.
If you fall victim to a fraud or know someone who has, contact the Niagara Regional Police Service (905-688-4111) and the CAFC (1-888-495-8501) even if a financial loss did not occur.
Lastly, remember the admonition that if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.
