SENIOR SCAM ALERT! #5, PHONY SOCIAL SECURITY SCAMS

Welcome to the Senior Scam Alert, a article fashioned to inform seniors of scams and cons that are regularly sworn against them. Seniors are victims of cons more ofttimes than whatever another geezerhood group. People over 65 are targeted for scams more than whatever another geezerhood group, and statement for 56% of every humbug cases, modify though they are exclusive most 13% of the US population.

Phony Social Security Scams

Beware of Social Security Scams! The Social Security Administration and the Better Business Bureau hit both issued alerts for seniors regarding binary ethnic section scams. Here are whatever examples;

1. Mail Scams:

Scammers module commonly beam discover a statement or another official-looking document, ofttimes with the text “social security” or polity insignia. The wander asks the individual to “confirm” individualized information, much as ethnic section number, fellow of birth, and slope statement aggregation (for candid deposit). This aggregation is then utilised for indistinguishability theft. If you are unsafe most the lineage of a document, call your topical ethnic section office, or go online at http://www.ssa.gov.

2. Phone Scams:

One wander involves ring fraud. An indistinguishability felon module call grownup citizens, move as a polity employee. They module communicate for individualized information, or for the recipient’s candid installation information. Sometimes, the acquirer is told their Social Security benefits are existence revilement because they hit inherited a concern from a relative. The wander artists module then communicate for money to clear a phoney “tax bill”.

3. Phony Document Preparation:

Another wander has to do with “document preparation” or phoney “security checks” on their ethnic section account. They module calculate a gift for obtaining a ethnic section sort for a child, which is actually liberated at whatever topical ethnic section office. The speaker strength substance to ordered up a “security check” on their SSA account, arousal them to whatever humbug that strength occur. This is also a phoney wander fashioned to wander seniors discover of their money. Senior citizens and non-English speakers are the most ordinary victims of this scam.

4. Drug Enrollment Program Scams:

A newborn alteration of these scams has to do with medication take plans. Callers module substance to recruit individual in phoney medication take plans, or authorised “discount plans”. They module communicate for individualized information, and assign bill information. They module then calculate the assign bill or ingest the aggregation for indistinguishability theft.

Remember, you should never wage discover your ethnic section sort or slope aggregation to anyone over the phone, unless you initiated the call, and you are trusty the sort is correct. The Social Security duty module never beam you documents requesting your ethnic section information—they already hit it!

According to the Office of the Inspector General, there are whatever instances where an SSA employee module officially occurrence you. If an SSA employee should officially ever occurrence you, the SSA employee module not communicate you to wage your Social Security number, fellow of birth, or another identifiers. If the speaker does communicate for this information, secure up and inform the call directly as fraudulent.

If you are unsafe as to the credibility of someone who claims to be an SSA employee, gratify call SSA’s toll-free sort (1-800-772-1213) to avow the think for the occurrence and the person’s indistinguishability preceding to providing whatever aggregation to the caller. If you see that you hit been a individual of fraud, occurrence the Office of the Inspector General, at 1-800-269-0271. (If you are unheeding or hornlike of hearing, call the OIG TTY sort at 1-866-501-2101.) A Public Fraud Reporting modify is also acquirable online at OIG’s Website: http://www.ssa.gov/oig/.

Do not be afeard or ashamed to inform fraud! Remember; if it sounds likewise beatific to be true, it belike is!

Sources: Better Business Bureau, US Social Security Administration, US Office of the Inspector General

Christine P Silva, BA, CRTP, lives in Calif. with her husband, digit children, and threesome stale cats. She attained her collegian honor from San Jose State University, and her modern business credential and set authorise from Cosumnes River College. She is the originator of the Sacramento Volunteer Tax Preparation Clinic, a liberated assist substance set resource to baritone income and Spanish-speaking taxpayers.

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