Financial exploitation of seniors persists

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Older Americans are falling victim to scams. Better Call 4 has told you about some of the most common tactics reported to agencies like the Better Business Bureau of Central Ohio, the Attorney General's Office, the Federal Trade Commission and even the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In fact, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) recently released its 2023 Elder Fraud Annual Report, which stated that adults over the age of 60 reported around $3.4 billion in monetary losses to fraud and scams last year.

"So, what the FBI's report is about is what they call 'elder fraud,' which is when a stranger takes advantage of an elder," Ian Bednowitz, general manager for cyber safety company Norton Lifelock, said.

Bednowitz said around the same time, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network -- a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury -- released its report. The findings, for Bednowitz, hit close to home.

"They, in general, talk about elder financial exploitation, and there are two types," Bednowitz said. "One is the elder fraud, the other is elder theft. And the number two form of elder theft is when a caregiver in the home actually steals from the elder. That was my personal experience was with elder theft."

Bednowitz said the caregiver hired to take care of his mother was actually taking money from her.

"Thousands of dollars," said Bednowitz. "And my heart sunk."

Bednowitz said he spent a lot of time and energy cleaning up the mess that caregiver created, and doesn't want to see anyone else go through that.

"The best defense is a good offense," said Bednowitz. "If you have a caregiver in the home, you need to protect yourself."

Bednowitz suggested vetting the agency and the caregiver, but warned against relying solely on a background check.

"My caregiver was background checked," Bednowitz said. "She actually had a fake identity that she used past the background check."

Dig a little deeper into their identity, he said. Before you invite them into the home, get all of the personal information out.

"Make sure you get all tax returns out, get the social security number out, start changing, redirecting where mail is going, so that it's not coming to the home," said Bednowitz.

Finally, consider freezing your -- or your loved one's -- credit.

"If your credit is frozen, no one can take out access without you giving permission yourself to use your credit," said Bednowitz. "And if you're not going out and actually using your credit to buy a car or a home, keep your credit frozen."