Greg's Corner

Tagged: retirees Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on March 30, 2023 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: cryptocurrency ( 43 ), pig butchering scam ( 11 ), retirees, romance scam ( 68 ), Scams ( 1,228 )   

  Crypto-Romance scam runs rampant among retirees 

  

  By Greg Collier

  When we think of Florida, we often think of retirees, since Florida is one of the most popular states to retire to. And since Florida has so many retirees, scammers see the Sunshine State as an easy target. Recently, Florida has seen an uptick in romance scams that involve the victim thinking they’re investing their savings into cryptocurrency. It’s called the pig butchering scam, and it has cost its Florida victims hundreds of thousands of dollars each. It’s called that because the victims are seen as pigs who the scammers ‘raise’ until it’s time to lead the victim to financial slaughter.

  The scam typically begins when the victim establishes a relationship with a potential romantic partner through a dating platform or social media. The scammer will keep the victim interested and eventually offer to help them make money by investing in cryptocurrency. The victim is then directed to a cryptocurrency exchange that is controlled by the scammers. They are instructed to invest their money into the exchange, which the scammer will claim has generated substantial returns. However, when the victim attempts to withdraw their funds, they are informed that they need to pay additional fees in order to receive their returns. This pattern of demands for more money continues until the victim either runs out of funds or realizes that they are being scammed.

  Recently, a retiree from Port St. Lucie, Florida came forward to local media after losing $250,000 to this scam. He though ht had entered into an online relationship with a woman. The scammer cultivated the relationship before asking the man if he wanted to make money through cryptocurrency. After losing the $250,000, the scammer cut off all communication with the man, now he’s in danger of losing his home.

  The best way to protect yourself from this scam is to avoid anyone offering to help you make money through cryptocurrency, especially if you’ve never met them in person. Cryptocurrency markets are so volatile that even legitimate investments can disappear quickly. Plus, cryptocurrency is a preferred method of payment for scammers and other cybercriminals.

  Even though this scam has a fancy name, at its heart it’s still a romance scam. If you develop an online relationship and your online partner starts asking for money, they’re more than likely a scammer. If the person has provided you with photos, try using reverse image search to see if the photos have been used elsewhere on the internet. Romance scammers often use photos of other people to create fake identities.

  Romance scammers often ask their victims for money or personal information, such as bank account details, credit card numbers, or social security numbers. Be suspicious of anyone who makes these requests, especially if you have not met them in person.

   

  Leave a ReplyCancel reply
• 

  Geebo 8:00 am on October 29, 2021 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: bank scam ( 64 ), florida ( 30 ), identity theft ( 96 ), retirees, Scams ( 1,228 ), venmo ( 26 )   

  Retirees lose savings to new Venmo scam 

  

  By Greg Collier

  While Venmo is no stranger to scams on their platform, this may be one of the most heinous Venmo scams we’ve heard of. What makes this one worse than most is that the people being scammed didn’t even use Venmo.

  A retired couple from Florida who are said to be in ill health lost their life savings of close to $20,000 to a Venmo scammer. While it’s not required to use Venmo, some Venmo users connect a bank account to their Venmo account. Somehow, the scammer got a hold of the couple’s banking information and linked it to a Venmo account that the couple was unaware of.

  The scammer started slowly, at first only transferring small amounts under a dollar out of the couple’s account. Before too long, the scammer was transferring $1500 a week until the bank account was drained of $19,500. The couple didn’t notice until their rent check bounced. When they called their bank to try and resolve the matter, the bank reportedly told the couple to call Venmo. Venmo in turn is said to have told the couple to call the bank. The couple didn’t even know what Venmo was prior to this. Now, the couple is facing health and housing issues while the bank, Venmo, and police investigate the situation.

  What really is concerning is how was the scammer able to obtain the couple’s bank account information. One way that has been increasingly popular with scammers recently is stealing outgoing mail from people’s mailboxes. This is done in order to either obtain a check, so the scammers can rewrite the check. The mail and checks can also be used to obtain banking information as well. We’re not saying that this exactly what happened to this unfortunate couple, but it’s a good possibility.

  In this day and age, it’s always a good idea to make regular checks of your bank accounts for fraudulent activity. For most people, this can be done through mobile apps, where you can check your account at any time. However, for seniors who may still use older methods like waiting for their bank statement in the mail, there are other options. They can always call the customer service department of their bank to get a rundown of their account activity over the phone. They can also go to their bank’s local branch to obtain a print out of their account’s activity that they can review at home.

  If you have older relatives or friends who may not be tech-savvy, you may want to suggest that they keep a close eye on their bank accounts.