08/01/2025
PSA-Important!
Just in the last couple months we’ve seen a growing number of social engineering attacks on clients where the end results are people being tricked into sending money to a third party “for various, important reasons”. Trust me we've heard them all. And unfortunately, our older clientele is being targeted and falling victim to these practices more often than not. It’s more important than ever to have a conversation with not only your immediate family but parents or grandparents about these trends.
Most people will say it will never happen to them, I’m too smart for that. But with the growing sophistication of these bad actors you may be surprised at how realistic they can make things look or sound. Education and awareness to prevent these things from happening in the first place is key. While the internet is loaded with great material on this topic, here’s some good refreshers:
1) Any “out of the blue” request, especially ones attempting to get sensitive information (ie dates of birth, social security numbers, account numbers) or those that create a sense of urgency (ie we need you to do this now, it can't wait) should always be treated as fraudulent.
2) If by email, doublecheck the email address for any discrepancies or misspelling. If something doesn’t look right, it probably is.
3) Never click a link without hovering over it first, confirming the URL is legitimate. When in doubt mark as junk and move on! Never open suspicious attachments from unknown sources
4) If someone asks you to take money out of your accounts: Automatic red flag. If they ask you to lie to others about the reason that is one of the biggest red flags of them all. Asking for cash or bitcoin is another. Bitcoin transactions should always be treated as 100% fraudulent.
5) Go to your online account, that you know is legitimate, and see if there are any notifications there that are similar to a phone call, email or text you’ve received. Don’t rely upon a text or email and links contained in those……….go to the source first.
These may sound like things everyone should know, but remember these scammers are targeting older people who may not be as aware or tech savvy, widowers, or people who have had things happen to them that are public knowledge and preying on emotion. Always be wary!
While you can add coverage onto your homeowners policy to protect against some of these types of losses, the best prevention is always education and being vigilant.
Unfortunately, this is the world we live in and it’s not going away anytime soon. Please share and spread the word, I'd love to never get another one of these types of calls again.
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