Category: Resources for Granges and Grangers

The impact of elder financial abuse is profound. While abuse can come from known perpetrators like caregivers or family members, scams carried out by strangers are also a major threat. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission estimated that criminals stole as much as $61.5 billion from adults age 60 and over in 2023 alone. With World Elder Abuse Awareness Day coming up on June 15, it’s a timely reminder that we can take steps to prevent the financial exploitation of older adults.

Encourage older adults in your life to add a trusted contact to their financial accounts. This person won’t have access to make transactions but can be notified if there’s suspicious activity or if the account holder can’t be reached.

Freezing credit is an important way to prevent unauthorized accounts from being opened in their name. Additionally, help reduce exposure to phone-based scams by setting up robocall and text message blockers through their mobile carriers or reputable apps.

Small actions like these can go a long way to protecting the financial well-being of older adults and ourselves.

Be a fraud fighter! If you can spot a scam, you can stop a scam.

Report scams to local law enforcement. For help from AARP, call 1-877-908-3360 or visit the AARP Fraud Watch Network at aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.

If your phone’s been lighting up with messages saying you owe a road toll, you’re not alone. Criminals are blasting out fake texts pretending to be from government agencies or toll services. Their goal? To scare or rush you into clicking a link, handing over personal info or making a payment.

Here’s what you need to know: legitimate toll agencies don’t collect payment via text message, and they won’t threaten you over a missed toll.

If you get a message about unpaid tolls, do not respond or click on any links—even if it looks legit. Instead, check your account using the state tolling agency or transponder company’s legitimate website or phone number—not information from the message.

Be a fraud fighter! If you can spot a scam, you can stop a scam.

Report scams to local law enforcement. For help from AARP, call 1-877-908-3360 or visit the AARP Fraud Watch Network at aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.

QR codes are everywhere – from restaurant menus to package tracking. But where there is innovation, there are criminals exploiting them for fraud. QR codes are now being used by scammers to lead you to phishing websites, where they may steal sensitive details like banking info, login credentials and more.

Before acting on a QR code in the real world, check for signs of manipulation (a sticker over the original QR, for example). And you don’t have to use a QR code – if you’re at a restaurant, ask for the printed menu. Also, look at emailed or texted QR codes with suspicion; the point of them is to link you to a website when you’re not otherwise online.

Just like when clicking links, it is important to use caution when scanning QR codes to ensure the source is trustworthy.

Be a fraud fighter! If you can spot a scam, you can stop a scam.

Report scams to local law enforcement. For help from AARP, call 1-877-908-3360 or visit the AARP Fraud Watch Network at aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.