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Posse, MCSO to help residents avoid scams

Hagen will give tips during seminar

Posted 10/6/19

Senior citizens continue to be targets of scammers at a growing rate, but they can avoid them by following tips from law enforcement.

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Posse, MCSO to help residents avoid scams

Hagen will give tips during seminar

Posted

The Sun City Posse and Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office District 3 will team up to host a seminar for seniors in the community to help them recognize scams and provide tips to keep from being victims of them. The seminar is scheduled 10 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 30 in the auditorium at Posse headquarters, 10861 W. Sunland Drive.
The event is coordinated by Sun City Posse members Jean Schmitt and Toni Ashby, managers of the Posse’s Block Watch program.
“We’re doing this because what people don’t know can hurt them,” Ms. Schmitt said.
Sgt. Zane Hagen, MCSO District 3 community outreach officer, will be the guest speaker at the seminar. Some of the topics he will address are Social Security fraud, identity theft and general scams. The seminar will also include a question and answer period.
It is estimated that someone is scammed every two seconds, according to Ms. Schmitt.
“We are running all this information through our Block Watch captains,” she explained. “But we want to open this up to the public also.”
Scammers rely on people’s trust and while there are some familiar approsches that have been around for years, there are new ones popping up all the time. In many ways change makes it easier for scammers to operate because it involves some unknowns and victims are easier to swindle when they are unsure. Some of the scams aren’t obvious, and sometimes the victims don’t get hurt right away, so the criminals are long gone when the crime is discovered.
Some examples of new scam approaches in the past two years are Medicare cards, door-to-door satellite TV service solicitations and package delivery. All are designed to gather personal information from victims.
“Con artists use everyday tools to commit these types of scams — the mailbox, the telephone and the internet,” as stated on the Attorney General’s website, www.azag.gov.
Other areas the Attorney General’s Office investigates are charity scams, predatory lending, debt collections, pyramid schemes, door-to-door sales, sweepstakes and lotteries, Internet auctions, travel scams, home improvement schemes and moving fraud. Some of these activities are legal, but scammers use them as a way to trick people, mostly senior citizens, into paying for items and services that may never be given or performed.
Sun City resident Geraldine Patt last year told of a scam involving these new Medicare account numbers. Ms. Patt said people falsely claim to be from Medicare to get a victim’s account and other personal information. Among things they ask for is a Social Security number.
“Sometimes they claim the person must pay to get the new card or threaten to cancel coverage if the person doesn’t share personal information,” she stated in an email.
There is no cost for the new card. If a resident feels the call is fraudulent they should hang up and call Medicare directly. The number is 800-772-1213.
Sun City resident Dwayne Cline last year reported a suspicious person coming to his door supposedly representing a satellite service.
“I noticed the identification card the person was wearing seemed to be a fake,” he stated in an email. “Then the sales representative asked for my Social Security number, driver’s license number and more confidential information, saying it was necessary to setup an appointment.”
Mr. Cline declined to provide the information.
Another method of getting information that surfaced last year is by telling a resident there was a package delivery attempt, and they must call to setup a time for the delivery. Capt. Jan Vejraska, Sun City West Posse, showed an apparent false delivery slip from a service that apparently doesn’t deliver anything. With online purchases becoming more common, many people accept the fact there was a missed delivery.

“When the resident calls the number on the slip, the business will ask for some personal information to confirm the legitimacy of the caller,” Ms. Vejraska explained. “The business isn’t a delivery service after all, but a data gathering firm.”
Fine print on the back of the note left on the door indicated the real purpose is to gather personal information.
Mia Garcia, Arizona Attorney General Office spokeswoman, said the office is aware of such scams, and people should not give any personal information over the phone.
“Residents should always be wary of such messages that aren’t from a known delivery service, such as UPS, FedEx or the Post Office,” Ms. Garcia said. “When making online purchases, the seller should give a tracking number for the customer that gives the name of the delivery service.”
The process known as “spoofing” makes it appear that the call is from a different number and person than is really making it. Spoofcards can easily be purchased online to change the name and phone number for the caller. Some cards can even change the caller’s voice.
Recreation Centers of Sun City West officials warn they were spoofed. When a resident sees the RCSCW name and number on the phone and answer it, they may actually be talking to a telemarketer, according to a 2018 RCSCW press release.
Sun City Home Owners Association officials also provide seminars on scams and frauds during their scheduled town hall meetings. Call 623-974-4718 or visit www.suncityhoa.org for information.