Haunted by Retirement – Scammers Lurking In The Shadows

October is the creepy month we celebrate what scares us.

Halloween’s spooky origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago, mostly in the area that is now Ireland and the United Kingdom, celebrated their new year on November 1.

This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death.

Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. Scary, scary stuff.

Retirement Can Be Scary Too

Many Americans are not only financially unprepared to retire – some fear retirement more than death.

About 61% of working Americans are more scared of retiring than of dying, according to a national survey for LiveCareer in 2024.

Those concerns reflect scary pictures painted by other studies over the years as the population continues to get older and live longer.

Here is a scary statistic: About 20% of Americans ages 50 and older have no retirement savings, according to an AARP survey. The research also found 61% are worried they won’t have enough money for retirement.

It is not just money that fuels fears of a scary retirement. Other concerns include a loss of identity, says Psychology Today, which notes, “for many people, their job is a big part of their identity.”

But here is something even scarier than a loss of identity: bad people are out to steal your actual identity and rob you blind.

Why Scammers Are The Scariest

Since 2004, the President of the United States and Congress have declared October to be Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a time dedicated to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity.

Over the years it has grown into a collaborative effort between government and industry to encourage actions by the public to reduce online risk. October 2024 marks the 21st Cybersecurity Awareness Month.

Make no doubt about it, sophisticated scammers are out to steal your identity for financial gain.

Identity thieves who steal your personal info can use it to open new financial accounts in your name, make purchases using your credit cards, or withdraw cash from your bank accounts.

But fear not, you can help prevent identity theft. The best action to take is to subscribe to an identity theft protection service. This will help you spot signs that your identity might have been stolen and help you recover if you become a victim.

Unfortunately, there is always a chance that someone could steal this data whenever we provide it.

Personally, thieves somehow hijacked my W-2 forms and filed fake tax returns in my name, attempting to get the refund transferred to their bank account. Fortunately, they made a slip up and I thwarted the scam.

ABC News recently reported that people older than 60 lost more money in scams in 2023 than the previous year — an 11% increase totaling more $3.4 billion overall. Commonly known as “elder fraud,” financial crimes against seniors were up from $3.1 billion in 2022, according to the FBI’s 2023 “Elder Fraud Report.”

There was also a 14% increase in complaints filed with the FBI by elderly victims. Nearly 6,000 lost more than $100,000. If the money came from their tax deferred 401(k) or IRA account, they also owed taxes to the IRS on the money stolen.

But Don’t Be Scared, Get Prepared

There are simple steps to reduce the scary chance of identity theft and scammers.

Besides subscribing to an identity theft protection service, there are other ways to help stop identity theft. These include freezing your credit with the big three credit bureaus, reviewing credit card and bank statements regularly, creating unique passwords for your accounts, shredding documents with personal info, and installing antivirus/software.

According to the FBI, tech con jobs usually involve scammers claiming to be support from a legitimate company and informing the victim of fraudulent activity or potential refund for a subscription service.

Across the United States, criminal call scams netted more than $700 million in 2023 — with almost half of those victims were of retirement age.

Some retirees have been convinced they are helping a government sting operation against their CPA and family members, only to be swindled out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Sad to report we have experienced several attempted scams with the families we serve. Some of the con artists are very sneaky. Some have even turned to threatening violence to loved ones with graphic photos if you do not comply.

If you are approached, please be suspicious and reach out to us or your financial institution for advice before it is too late.