MONTICELLO – June is Elder Abuse Awareness Month and because there has been an increase in fraudulent incidents especially since COVID-19, officials want you to be on the lookout for older family members as well as yourself. The director of the Sullivan County Office of the Aging Lise-Anne Deoul says to be aware of scams.
Deoul said people should be aware of all scam scenarios. “The romance scams where people are saying I’m your girlfriend, send me money or you won the lottery. You need to send money to get the money. All of them try to represent themselves as something legitimate, whether it be Social Security, the IRS, or a local bank,” she said.
According to the FBI’s latest Internet Crime Complaint Center, there have already been $1.6 billion in losses from January to May of 2024. That’s up nearly $300 million from the same period last year. In 2023, a total of $3.4 billion in losses were reported and elder fraud complaints increased by 14 percent from the prior year.
“They tell you that you need to pay a fine, or you need to subscribe to something, and the way they want you to send it is by prepaid gift cards. Once you send that off, it’s gone,” Deoul added.
Doeul said looking for signs that something may be wrong with an older person is obvious.
”So, if you’re visiting a loved one that you haven’t seen for a while or an elderly or older adult neighbor, that is maybe socially isolated, if you find that they’re talking to a new friend on the computer or on the phone, a lot more. Or they are getting a lot of spam calls, these are all potential things that could alert you that something might be going on,” she added.
If you are in doubt about anything that seems suspicious, residents are encouraged to contact the Sullivan County Office of the Aging at 845-807-0252.
