Phone/Internet Scams

Dear Readers: Many people have heart-breaking scam stories from fake celebrity endorsements, trusted companies, frantic relatives, or strangers with compelling problems. Internet scams reached a staggering $16.6 billion in 2024, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3),  up from $6.9B in 2021. Nigeria, closely followed by India, Russia, China, Mexico, Pakistan, Brazil, Indonesia, and Philippines are the leading fraudsters, but it’s everywhere, and more sophisticated than ever with Artificial Intelligence help. How to protect yourself: 1) don’t give personal information or money without verification (call them back using other than the number they gave you); make sure they have a physical address and customer service line; 2) search on-line if person/product is “fake” or “scam;” 3) don’t answer phone calls you don’t know; if they leave a message, internet search if it’s real; 4) use credit card (with stronger fraud protection), not debit; 5) report scams to FBI IC3, AARP helpline (877-908-3360), etc. Don’t trust until you verify. -SQ