BATAVIA — New York State Police in Troop A are on a pace to far outnumber the amount of scams investigated this year and are warning that most recent scams have been targeting elderly citizens.
Troop A, which includes Genesee, Wyoming and Orleans counties, conducted 442 fraud cases in all of 2021.
At the end of March, troopers have investigated 113.
Although numbers for April to June have not been released, investigators say scams have become increasingly prevalent in the past few weeks.
More than $500,000 was reported stolen in such scams this year compared to just more than $1 million in 2021.
The types of scams include different scenarios.
n The caller claims to be a family member who is sick or has been arrested.
n The caller claims to be a law enforcement official saying a family member has been arrested and needs bail money or other funds.
n The caller claims to be law enforcement and says that your Social Security number or bank accounts have been compromised. The caller will ask the person to verify their Social Security numbers of bank account numbers.
n Emails or texts with an “URGENT” message regarding Social Security numbers, bank accounts, Apple, Netflx or Amazon accounts that were compromised.
n Callers will ask victims to get money in multiple ways, including purchasing gift cards and sending the bar code on the back to the caller,…
