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So You’ve Been Scammed—Here’s Everything You Should Do Next

Being defrauded can be a confusing and scary experience but you don't have to go through the experience alone. Here's what to do if you've been the victim of a scam.

One of the major challenges for older adults using technology is knowing how to prevent online fraud from happening. Not everyone knows the red flags to look for when it comes to elder financial abuse or the most common scams targeting older adults, and that’s okay. According to the Department of Homeland Security, “seniors are defrauded at twice the rate of the rest of the population.”

Seniors are a particularly attractive population as they usually own their own residence, have a large savings, and have good credit. If you’ve been scammed, know that you aren’t alone, you don’t have to feel ashamed, and there’s steps you can take to protect yourself as quickly as possible. Let’s take a look at what you should do if you’ve been defrauded or scammed on the internet. If it seems like an overwhelming task to handle, consider asking a caretaker or trusted loved one to help you navigate exactly what happened and how you can recover your loss.

Contact Your Bank and Credit Card Company

Did the scam involve your credit card or debit card number? Did someone get access to your login credentials for your financial accounts? Contact your bank and credit card company as soon as you can to figure out which transactions were fraudulent and cancel your cards immediately and receive new ones. Customer service representatives can also help you file a fraud report.

If you regularly use the same password, make sure you go back through your accounts and change them. For extra protection, don’t use the same password for every account. Consider using a third-party password manager for seniors like 1Password or KeeperSecurity.com to keep your passwords safe and organized in an easy and accessible way.

Submit a Complaint to the Federal Trade Commission

Before you file a police report, submit a report about the theft to the FTC. As you go through the steps, you’ll be asked to answer some questions about what happened, and the FTC will create a personal recovery plan to help you navigate the process. Once that’s happened, you can create an account with the FTC for additional support. 

File a Police Report

Filing a police report can vary depending on the city or town you live in. Check with your local police department to see if you can file a report online or if you need to submit a paper report in person.

Get a Copy of Your Police Report

When you submit claims to credit bureaus, debt collectors, and other creditors, you may need to provide documentation of what happened. If you can’t get a copy of the police report, make sure to write down the police report number for your records.

Request A Fraud Alert 

According to the FTC, a fraud alert can make it harder for an identity thief to open more accounts in your name. You can place a fraud alert by asking one of the three nationwide credit bureaus.

An initial fraud alert remains on your credit reports for 90 days, and you can renew it as many times as you want. If you want an extended fraud alert, which lasts for seven years, you will need to contact each credit bureau to submit your request. 

Keep Track of Your Credit Score

Monitoring your credit score on a regular basis can help you identify any potential changes or drops in your score you either don’t recognize or signal there’s something troubling happening. After a fraud alert has been placed on your credit history, you’re entitled to receive a free copy of your credit report from all three bureaus. 

Have another question? Ask an expert.

Our team is here for you. If you have a question about caring for an older adult or other member of your family—be it physical, legal, medical, financial, or anything in between—we’ll have one of our Trusted Advisors get back to you ASAP.

2 thoughts on “So You’ve Been Scammed—Here’s Everything You Should Do Next

  1. i have been a victim recently of everthing.. id thefts, bank fraud, scams, the whole bit.. it feels like i have been attacked, not omly by the victemizers, but especially by the ones in the busineeses. and the places ive had accounts at. including the cell phone company. No one offers solutions that are real, and they aklways have an attitude that i am the scammer, or the one who was doing something wrong. i have had to shut down bank accounts and start watching all the time for that few that are totalling my credit and my reputation. its cost me thousaands with no one willing to help recoup the financial losses, and the monetary expense of replacing equipment has been more than i can afford.. no one cares.. as long as they dont have to get involved.. no one believes, no matter how much proof you have. no one has an organized department ready to help the one contacting claiming its happening to them.. they can write all the articles they want giving all the basic warnings and advicd, but no one is there to assistuntil its all taken care of.. you are on your own.

    1. Absolutely Dody! This is a huge issue today. It’s actually incredible how many people get scammed on a daily basis, but they aren’t willing to talk about it because everyone makes them feel ashamed. Thanks for speaking up!

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