My mom managed to push a series of buttons in a bizarre order, turning her phones into paperweights.
After a few minutes (and two You Tube videos) I had the phones working: in 20 minutes mom received six calls, all from scammers…
One wanted money to help the Camp Lejeune Marines “poisoned by their government;”
One wanted to “confirm” her ‘on-line Walmart order (she has neither a computer nor a credit card and this family does not send money to the Walton – Kroenke cabal);
Two wanted her to change to a “better” Medicare supplement; and,
Two, well, when I heard the telltale sounds and accents of Asian Call Centers I never gave them a chance to say anything.
Alas, these calls overwhelm my mom every day. Telephone scammers call and call and call. Several times a day she calls me asking who is her Medicare provider, does she need to pay a processing fee for representation in the “serious car accident” of a couple of years ago (never happened), does she want to support women firefighters/disabled cops/oppressed peoples everywhere, should she sign-up for “free life insurance,” and so it goes.
My brother and I talked my mom out of her credit card after $35 “one time gifts” to “charities” – most were ‘c 4’ political groups, not real charities – actually authorized automatic monthly charges, or, $420 a year. Same thing happened to her check book.
So, have I reported this behavior to law enforcement and other authorities?
I tried. No one protects seniors from these scammers. And the “No Call List” long ago became a joke.
Her assisted living facility only allows Spectrum landlines. Those aren’t regulated by the Missouri Public Service Commission nor are they overseen by federal regulators. That lack of oversight allows Spectrum to sell its customer lists with phone numbers attached too.
I was told how to block a number to prevent repeat calls. Ha-ha. The thieves spoof numbers. Each call with the same scam appears to be coming from a different number. Of those six I answered one had a 240 area code (eastern Maryland) but four of the others claimed to be from code 636 and one from 573. Three had individuals’ names on the Caller ID screen.
And, without a solid, verified number you can’t get anywhere with a complaint.
Before our firebreaks went up my mom probably $1,000+. Her money stays safe now but how many other seniors fall prey every day?
What can be done? Glad you asked…
- Require all phone services to use technology to prevent spoofing numbers.
- Make it a federal felony with hard prison time and seven figure fines to evade or attempt to avoid anti-spoofing tech.
- Require all phone service providers to be subject to the same state and federal regulation.
- Require all surviving telemarketers to use their real name and identify where they are calling from and who pays them.
- Require credit card companies and banks to verify with the account holder every charge authorized by phone.
I know, this may be howling at the moon. Yet telephone companies, credit card issuers and banks profit along with the scammers. Ripping off seniors is a big, profitable enterprise. Good corporate citizens shouldn’t participate or profit. Already a regulated industry, perhaps the money people ought to be required to publish the names of their corporate clients processing individual payments. Boring reading – until they steal from your family.
Glenn Koenen
Photo by Ricardo Oliveira: https://www.pexels.com/photo/telephone-under-tv-17058039/