Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Advise your elderly relatives about scams

I didn't know how best to word the title of this post so I opted for the above.

Just wanted to mention that my parents(Dad 70 + Mom 75) just received a call on their answering machine.

It was from a number in Illinois but the voice message said to call a 877 number. It stated that they may have won a car from an entry into a contest they filled out 4 to 18 months ago. They would only need to claim 1 of 4 preliminary prizes first.
the caller also made sure to state that he was aware of caller "id"(not I.D. but id like the wizard of id)and that the company was not a telemarketer or timeshare company.

I did a quick search and there is a trove of 800notes.com posts lsiting the same exact thng from many different numbers all leading back to Chicago Heights IL and many different 800,888,877 numbers.
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-877-279-3457

Just wanted to be sure during this time of monetary problems and the holidays that no one here has a loved one get taken.

My Mom was somewhat eager to call back because she fills out all those contest entries at the grocery store, walmart etc. but my Dad wisely said no, she asked me and I looked into it.

I just wonder what would have happened had she answered the phone when no one else was there and got talked into something by some slick huckster.

lets make sure these criminals only go to jail and not past go.

Thanks for the heads up here!

I am my elderly relative, thanks for the heads up.

There are scum-bags that are heart less and soul less in this world.... those that prey on kids and the elderly are especially revolting..... I had recently stopped my Father from investing in a gold-mine..... the person responsable for this thought had said " well , where does gold come from ? & doesn't this (current economic conditions) remind you of the great depression".... after some phone calls to the family attorney , the folly has been laid to rest....... .... you got it right..... there are alot of snakes out there and it is a good idea to keep ones eyes open where our "older" family and friends are concerned.

These scams are so prevalent because they're so successful.

Last year, one of our employees' mother lost about 10K in only a few months. We were able to get the Postal Inspectors office to shut the scammers down, but they reorganized under a different name and were back in business (probably within hours). His mother was so drawn in by their pitch and missed their regular phone calls that she contacted them and began sending them money again!

If you are contacted by one of these scams, contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/

If you have friends or family members that are susceptible to this kind of scam, the USPIS has informational warning videos that they will give you (FREE!). I gave several to the library in the retirement communities my parents live in and they show them periodically during get-togethers in the clubhouse.

Ironically, the usual motivation for falling for these get-rich-quick schemes is to be able to leave a legacy for the children after they're gone. Unfortunately, these bloodsuckers only want to separate people from all their money and by the time the money is gone, the victim is so embarassed that they've been taken that they're embarassed to tell anyone. Consequently, the extent of this organized crime is vastly unreported.

Got to be a special place in Hades.....

Revenge upon scammers has become a sport called Scam Baiting
Some funny stuff in there