Elder Abuse Recognition & Types

The elderly can be prime targets for various investment scams due to a desire for greater financial security in retirement, greater trustfulness, and cognitive decline. Some of the most common scams that impact seniors include:

• “Free Lunch” Seminars — Scammers often invite seniors to a seminar that includes a free meal, where they are pitched high-risk or fraudulent investment products. These seminars create a sense of urgency and are often framed as educational opportunities. The elderly may be manipulated into making decisions they don’t fully understand.
  
• Ponzi Schemes — Fraudsters promise high returns with little or no risk and use money from new investors to pay returns to earlier investors. Over time, the scheme collapses when the flow of new money slows down. Seniors are especially vulnerable to these scams because they sound like legitimate, high-reward opportunities. 
  
• High-Return “Too-Good-To-Be-True” Investment Offer  — Scammers offer opportunities that seem to promise unusually high returns, often in stocks, bonds or cryptocurrency investments. They may reach out via unsolicited phone calls, emails or even social media, claiming that these investments are exclusive, low-risk and guaranteed to provide significant returns. These offers often turn out to be fraudulent, with the scammer disappearing with the victim’s money.
  
• Pump and Dump Schemes — Fraudsters artificially inflate the value of a stock or cryptocurrency and then “pump” it by encouraging the elderly (and other investors) to buy into it. Once the price rises, the scammers “dump” their holdings, causing the stock or cryptocurrency’s value to crash. The elderly investor is left holding worthless assets. 
  
• Affinity Fraud — Scammers, sometimes posing as trusted figures in the community (e.g., a fellow church member or social leader), offer investment opportunities that promise high returns. The scammer takes advantage of this trust and may disappear with the funds once enough people have invested.

Sources

“A Guide for Seniors: Protect yourself against investment fraud.” U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/files/guideforseniors.pdf

“A List of the Most Common Elder Investor Scams”. Silver Law Group. https://www.silverlaw.com/common-investor-scams.html

Elder self-neglect refers to when an elderly person fails to provide for their own basic needs, including nutrition, hygiene, medical care (including regular medications), clothing, safe housing and/or personal safety. This type of neglect can result from a host of factors, including physical or cognitive impairment, mental health issues, recently losing a partner or loved one, and social isolation. Self-neglect can lead to serious health risks as well as reduce quality of life, making it a real concern for friends and family, caregivers and healthcare professionals.

If you believe a senior you know may be experiencing self-neglect, it’s prudent to raise the issue with one of their family members or loved ones. If this isn’t available, you should contact your local Adult Protective Services branch. You can search the database of the National Adult Protective Services Association to find a branch near you. 

Sources

“How can I recognize elder abuse?” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.hhs.gov/answers/programs-for-families-and-children/how-can-i-recognize-elder-abuse/index.html

“Signs of Self-Neglect”. National Adult Protective Services Association. https://www.napsa-now.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Self-Neglect_NAPSA-Branded-08-13-2022.pdf

Nonpayment and failed delivery scams can have a serious financial impact on elderly individuals, especially those on fixed incomes. Failed delivery scams are more common and occur when a scammer tricks a victim into believing there’s an issue with a package or delivery that was supposed to be sent to them. To resolve the supposed problem, the victim is asked to provide personal information, pay a fee, or click on a link that could lead to a phishing website designed to steal their personal or financial information. Also, non-delivery scams may refer to when a senior pays for a product or service from a fraudulent source, and never receives what they’ve purchased. The money lost from these types of scams can be difficult or impossible to recover. 

A nonpayment scam is a type of fraud that occurs when an elderly person is selling a good or service, and a person or business either refuses to pay for what they’ve received or falsely claims they haven’t received anything, leading to a financial loss for the seller or service provider.

In addition to the financial toll, these scams can cause emotional distress. The embarrassment or shame of being duped may lead to feelings of isolation, anxiety or depression, further harming the senior’s mental health and overall well-being.

Sources

“Holiday Scams”. FBI.gov. https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/common-frauds-and-scams/holiday-scams

“How to Protect a Loved One from Elder Fraud”. AAA: The Extra Mile. https://cluballiance.aaa.com/the-extra-mile/advice/budget/how-to-protect-a-loved-one-from-elder-fraud

“Package Delivery Scams”. American Bankers Association. https://www.aba.com/advocacy/community-programs/consumer-resources/protect-your-money/package-delivery-scams

“The Psychological Impact of Financial Elder Abuse”. Evans Law. https://www.evanslaw.com/practice-areas/financial-elder-abuse/psychological-impact-of-financial-elder-abuse/

A confidence scam (also known as a confidence trick) is a type of fraud where a scammer builds a relationship with a victim, typically through online platforms, to gain their trust. Once a relationship is established, the scammer deceives their victim out of money, property or information. The criminals who perpetrate confidence scams generally target vulnerable people, often those who are isolated or elderly. The scam typically starts with a friendly, innocent-seeming message, often through social media, where the scammer pretends to be a caring person in order to engage their victim in conversation. Over the course of weeks, months or even years, after a “secure” relationship is established, the scammer creates a crisis or financial need — such as claiming to be in trouble overseas or needing money for medical expenses — to request funds from the victim.

A romance scam is a type of confidence trick where the scammer begins the fraudulent relationship on a dating site or app. They create counterfeit profiles to lure in victims and build trust through regular conversation. Once a bond is formed, the scammer fabricates a story in order to solicit financial support, then disappears. One major red flag of a romance scam is an unwillingness to engage in video calls or meet in person (which would reveal a false dating profile).

To protect yourself from these types of scams, never give out financial information — whether to “accept a deposit” (another common tactic to gain sensitive banking info) or send money — to anyone you haven’t met in person. The same goes for purchasing gift cards/prepaid credit cards, wiring money, sending cryptocurrency or otherwise sending gifts.

Sources

“Protecting Your Finances: Understanding the Dangers of Confidence Scams”. United States Senate Federal Credit Union.  https://www.ussfcu.org/media-center/security-corner/blog-detail-security-corner.html?cId=92003&title=protecting-your-finances-understanding-the-dangers-of-confidence-scams

“What to Know About Romance Scams”. Federal Trade Commission. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/what-know-about-romance-scams

A tech support scam is when a scammer impersonates a technical support representative, often claiming to be from a well-known company like Microsoft or Apple, or a computer security company like McAfee or Norton. These scams exploit a victim’s fear and lack of technical knowledge. The scammer may make first contact through a phone call, email or even a pop-up ad or warning on a website, falsely alerting a victim that their computer is infected with a virus or has security issues. The scammer then pressures the victim into granting remote access to their device or purchasing unnecessary software and services, which can lead to significant financial loss and data compromise. Often, an email or pop-up ad will look legitimate, with logos or branding that look like the company the scammer is pretending to be from. If you have doubts, closely examine the email address or pop-up ad’s web address — it will usually be clear it’s not connected with the real company (there may be unusual combinations of letters or numbers, no company name, etc).

If you are concerned that your computer really does require support, go directly to the website of a reputable company, or bring your computer in-person to most any store that sells tech products.

If you have been contacted by a tech support scammer, you can report it to the Federal Trade Commission here.

Sources

“How To Spot, Avoid, and Report Tech Support Scams”. Federal Trade Commission Consumer Advice. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-spot-avoid-and-report-tech-support-scams

Elders are sadly a common target for scamming and fraud by criminals who use deceptive methods — including posing as investors with financial opportunities, necessary tech support, or gaining friendship or love via social media or texts — to earn an elder’s trust so they will send money.

Some common elder abuse scams include: 

• Impersonation Scams
  • Scammers pretend to be government officials, bank representatives or family members in urgent trouble to trick elders into sending money or sharing personal information
• Tech Support Scams
  • Fraudsters call and claim there’s a virus or security problem on the elder’s computer and offer fake tech support, often trying to gain remote access or payment for unnecessary services
• Lottery or Prize Scams
  • Seniors receive messages saying they’ve won a lottery or prize but must pay fees or taxes upfront to claim it, which is a trap to steal their money
• Nonpayment or Failed Delivery Scams
  • A criminal will reach out and claim a package is undeliverable, and request sensitive info; or a shoddy/fake company never delivers a good or service the elder has paid for
• Romance or Confidence Scams
  • Scammers build fake romantic (or friend) relationships online, gaining trust, then ask for money citing emergencies or travel expenses
• Caregiver or Family Scams
  • Caregivers, family members or acquaintances of the senior exploit or abuse them to gain access to their money
• Investment or Financial Advisor Scams
  • Scammers offer fake investment opportunities or financial advice promising high returns, tricking elders into handing over life savings
• Grandparent Scam
  • A criminal will pretend to be one of the elder’s relatives, often a child or grandchild, claiming they urgently need money

Sources

“Elder Fraud”. FBI.gov. https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/common-frauds-and-scams/elder-fraud

“Holiday Scams”. FBI.gov. https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/common-frauds-and-scams/holiday-scams