What we’re about
I have an effort to address how to stop the elderly from falling for scams. I need as many great minds to help create solutions to these kinds of issues:
1. Make it second-nature that certain situations are scams:
- Elderly know that "no bank will ever call for your password" or "my grandchild will never call because he is in jail". The ideas I have are to work with businesses (banks, utilities etc.) to do a Public Service Announcement ("PNC Bank will never call and ask for your password" or "Duquesne Light will never call you for your credit card payment")
- PR campaign "Gift cards are never used for payments by any real company" or "Gift cards are for gifts"
- Scripts of the scams - there are a few YouTube channels of people who fool the scammers - and they make it very clear what the questions are that are asked in sequence of the elderly to fool them. If we could just get these scripts out to the elderly so that they can recognize the scams when they are getting pulled into them
- Buddy system - Promote the idea that each elderly person has a "buddy" who they promise to call if they are about to a) give their credit card information to someone who cold-called them or b) get in a car to go buy a gift certificate to pay someone etc. We can educate through so many channels: church women's groups, social groups, printed documentation delivered with Meals on Wheels or in utility bills or coupon packs etc.
These are just some of the ideas. I have many others and I'm trying to create a community of people who want to help solve these problems and stop the elderly from being vulnerable to these attacks. This is part of a broader effort but I'm using this particular focus to gain momentum. If your loved one has been scammed, or almost fallen for a scam, please bring those "use cases" to the discussion and please consider asking your loved one "What would have stopped you in your tracks? Or prevented you from even starting to go down the path of being fooled?" There HAS to be a way to make these scams far more recognizable. These are the kinds of discussions I am hoping to start to have so that we can create solutions - or education - that really work and stick in their minds so that they really are protected.