It was 2020 and Christmas was just days away when Maggie* opened her front door to a police officer who told her that her bank account had been used to launder thousands of pounds. Not only that, but the culprit had, over a two-year period, also conned Maggie out of her life savings – a figure that totalled £150,000.
Like most scam victims, Maggie, who is in her 70s, never imagined it would happen to her. The experience left her reeling, both financially and emotionally. “I felt angry, ashamed and hurt… I’ve not told my daughter or any of my friends what happened.”
While Maggie’s story is shocking, it is sadly not uncommon. According to Age UK, the country’s largest charity for older people, one in 12 people aged 65 and over fall victim to a scam each year, while many others either don’t realise they have been defrauded or don’t report it. Millions more live in fear of it. Just this week, police said 70,000 people in the UK may have been victims of the iSpoof bank scam.
The cost of living crisis is leaving people even more vulnerable. “As people need more to pay the bills, they go for money-making ideas they wouldn’t normally consider. Sadly, many of those are fraudulent,” says Chris Brooks, head of policy at Age UK. And the stakes are higher than ever: according to research published by National Trading Standards last month, losing just £100 to a scam would leave one in four British adults in financial crisis.
Age UK, one of The Daily…
