A Michigan prosecutor lays out the most common scams he says residents need to be aware of.
Every day we seem to hear about a new scam or a new take on a scam that’s been around for decades. Calhoun County Prosecutor David Gilbert recently spoke out on the ones he says his office sees the most.
Many times our elderly residents are targeted in scams. Prosecutor Gilbert says that is because 70% of our nation’s wealth is held by people over 65 years old. Those scams aren’t just chump change. Elder fraud is well over a $50 billion a year enterprise.
Prosecutor Gilbert many of the scammers around today will either try to get you to send money to them or get information from you or the internet to gain access to your money. Sometimes those efforts are to get you to click on something online that will allow them to install malware or spyware to gain access to your computer and steal your information or money.
Scams reported in Calhoun County:
- Travel scams: travel scams can include supposed free vacations, robocalls on vacation deals, and rental vacation home scams.
- “IRS” scam: these scams can be initiated by phone or email. These scams range from pandemic-related emails promising money after the information is filled out to calls threatening arrest for overdue taxes. The IRS says they will never initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages, or social media channels to request personal or financial information.
- “Police” Scam: this scam involves using the phone to…
