The Better Business Bureau holds free scam prevention talks for older adults. On Tuesday, we sat in on the conversation to gather useful tips for the community.
Timothy Johnston, from the Better Business Bureau, told us, "Scam education is key. How do we prevent ourselves from being taken by an email, text, or some other type of scam?"
He also says scammers are typically after two things: our personal and financial information.
This May is Older Americans Month, and they say that the older community can be more vulnerable to scams, so the seminar aims to help them identify red flags.
Johnston tells us the scams he sees the most: "As we take a look at the reports of the BBB scam tracker, it's investment cryptocurrency scams that are the riskiest, followed by relationship/friendship scams and then home improvement scams, and that's for individuals 65 plus."
Most often, they see scams come through text messages, followed by emails, and then phone calls. They say phone calls are typically where people lose the most money.
"When it comes to scams, if you received an unexpected email, text, phone call, or QR code, don't click on links, don't download any attachments, and don't call any particular numbers. If it's supposedly your bank, reach out to your bank directly in a way that you know is legitimate. Scammers are hoping to catch you off guard and make you make an emotional decision by clicking a link and putting in your sign-in for your financial institution, and the scammer has that and can go to town," Johnston explains.
We also asked participant Liz Knott why she decided to attend: "I wanted to know more about how artificial intelligence is working and the scams that are out there. Luckily, so far I've caught every single one as a scam because I had propaganda techniques in high school."
She told us the BBB scam tracker is a good resource.
"That the Better Business Bureau really is an organization to check when I need to have the interior of my house painted. I went online, and I got so many things that say, 'Oh, we'll paint your house.' No, thank you. I want to find the person myself, and I want it not to be a huge company or a national thing at all. I want it to be someone who is a mom-and-pop shop."
Johnston also tells us more about the tool they offer: "The Better Business Bureau is here to serve both businesses and consumers. We have great resources like BBB Scam Tracker, and just understand that in this current environment, scammers are using technology even possibly better than the professional world. But know that right now scammers are after your personal information, your financial information. If you're in any environment where someone is asking for that, your first question should be why."
If you would like to use the BBB Scam Tracker, you can click the link here.
