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NEWARK
– The Division of Consumer Affairs
today joined with Newark officials and presented
a fraud awareness and prevention program
specifically designed for senior citizens.
The
“FedUp - Senior Fraud Education &
Protection Program” was presented
to senior citizens at the Ironbound Senior
Center. FedUp is a statewide program created
by the Division of Consumer Affairs that
debuted in 2008 and includes a formal presentation
plus DVDs and booklets that are distributed
to attendees.
“FedUp
is a proactive program that educates seniors
in how to spot scams and how to avoid becoming
victims of fraud,” said Thomas R.
Calcagni, Acting Director of the State Division
of Consumer Affairs. “We’re
empowering seniors to better protect themselves
and their savings, as con artists continuously
try new schemes in attempts to defraud the
elderly.”
Calcagni
noted that the Division of Consumer Affairs
this February issued a public alert about
a scam targeting grandparents. In this scam,
the con artist calls the grandparent and
claims he/she is the grandchild and either
is stranded or under arrest and in need
of cash immediately. In most reported cases,
the caller claims to be in Canada on a visit
and that the money must be wired. The wired
funds end up in an account controlled by
the con artist.
The
con artist usually has the name of the grandchild,
which was obtained from online blogs, networking
web sites or genealogy web sites.
“The
sense of urgency, and the familiarity of
the caller knowing names, spurs some grandparents
into immediate action,” Calcagni noted.
“The best advice is to pause and check
if the grandchild really is away from home
and if the child’s parents know of
any emergency situation.”
Other
scams targeted at senior citizens and discussed
at today’s program include: advance
fee fraud, where a senior citizen
is informed that he/she has won a prize
but needs to send in money to pay for alleged
processing fees and/or local taxes; bogus
charities that ask for donations
in cash or via checks made out to “cash”;
unregistered contractors
who show up unannounced and offer a “special
deal” because they are allegedly working
in the neighborhood and have extra materials
to do a job; and rebate or reward
checks that covertly enroll the
person cashing the check into a subscription
or contract.
Topics
addressed in the FedUp program include:
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Home improvement projects and repairs
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Charitable Giving
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Telemarketing/Mail Fraud
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Investment Fraud
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ID Theft
Tear-out
tip sheets on these topics are included
in the brochures that were given to senior
citizens today. The tip sheets can be used
for quick reference on how to spot a potential
scam.
The
FedUp program is funded through a $58,000
grant, without the use of taxpayer money.
The grant comes from a $5 million fund established
for consumer education and protection projects,
under a multi-state settlement with Sears
in 1997.
Attending
today’s program with Acting Director
Calcagni were Margarita Muniz, Deputy Mayor
of Newark, and City Council Members Augusto
Amador, Mildred C. Crump and Luis A. Quintana.
The
State Division of Consumer Affairs can be
contacted through its web site, www.njconsumeraffairs.gov
or by calling 1-800-242-5846
(toll-free within N.J.) or 973-504-6200.
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