JOHNSTON COUNTY – A disabled Johnston County woman recently lost $7,000 in a scam. The 68 year-old victim, who suffers from a cognitive impairment, was on her computer when a pop up appeared.
The pop up urged the woman to call a toll-free number to speak with someone in technical support about a problem with her computer.
The victim was instructed to obtained $6,500 in gift cards from Lowes, Walmart and CVS, and provide the card numbers. The victim did as requested.
Later, a family member discovered what had happened and reported the incident to local authorities.
According to Psychiatric Times, about one in 5 Americans ages 65 or older has fallen victim to financial abuse. Financial exploitation is one of the most prevalent forms of elder abuse and is a major public health problem. Individuals with cognitive impairment are at an increased risk of becoming victims of scams due to decreased awareness, the report said.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau website has information about how to protect older adults from fraud and financial exploitation.
Theres a special place in the lake of fire for people who take advantage of others like that. Absolutely horrible.
I hope there is a special, extra toasty corner of hell reserved for scammers.
Families HAVE to talk to the elderly about these scams… It is so sad, these people prey on the elderly and handicap.
If you have any relatives with cognitive problems (Alzheimer’s, Dementia) or anything else that lessens their ability to make good decisions……Please consider becoming their power of attorney or at least be notified by their financial institution when money is removed from their account.
Also, employees who sell gift cards should be trained to specifically make sure the person purchasing gift cards is not in process of being scammed. It’s going to take all of us working together to stop these criminals who are very well rehearsed in their scams.
This story makes me sick. I agree with those who said the scammers should burn in a pool of fire but the problem is also that if the woman had cognitive impairment, why was a family member not in charge of her money?
Unfortunately, the mentally impaired refuse to acknowledge the impairment and will not sign over any responsibility for their finances. It takes doctors and lawyers to achieve this. I agree that sales personnel need training to spot this and prevent it from happening.