
Photo illustration by Sarah Finnegan
Many email services now filter and flag suspicious emails so users can avoid scams that attempt to steal personal information.
The City of Vestavia Hills will be hosting an informational seminar from 2-3 p.m. Aug. 7 addressing crimes and scams against the elderly. The seminar is hosted by Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church, and registration begins at 1:30 p.m.
Some of the topics to be covered include IRS scams, relative-in-distress scams, romantic website scams and reverse mortgage scams. There will also be information given on ways citizens can protect themselves and their assets from different types of con artists.
Recent information published by the FBI states senior citizens are specifically targeted in and should be made especially aware of fraud schemes.
According to Cinnamon McCulley, communications specialist for the city, approximately 70 percent of the citizens of Vestavia Hills are empty-nesters and are either senior citizens or approaching their senior years.
“Therefore, it is particularly important to make information available to our citizens that will encourage and enable them to protect themselves from con artists,” McCulley said.
State Rep. Paul DeMarco said con artists can prey on the elderly because they know that seniors have money set aside in savings.
“[Con artists] think that [seniors] are retired and have a lifetime of savings. [They] target seniors because they believe they have been saving their life earnings to live during retirement,” DeMarco said.
Senior citizens can appear more attractive to con artists because they often own their home or have excellent credit, according to the FBI.
Mayor Ashley Curry said the baby boomer generation, in particular, is being targeted because they were raised and taught to be polite.
“That generation grew up in a time of wanting to help people,” Curry said. “When they get the call about a relative in distress, inherently they want to help.”
There are currently no plans for any additional seminars, but McCulley said the city will work to accommodate the needs of citizens who would like any additional presentations on this topic or any other topic of interest.
The event is free and open to any adult interested in learning more about recent scams.
“The information presented will be beneficial for not only seniors, but also their caregivers or anyone interested in protecting themselves from being a victim of a financial crime,” McCulley said.
Participating agencies that will be available for information at the seminar include the Vestavia Hills Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation – Birmingham Division and the Alabama Office of Senior Services. These agencies will also be available to talk to people after the conference.
“We want to make sure that at the end of the meeting if they want one-on-one conversation, they can get that,” Curry said.
To learn more about this seminar and any other upcoming events visit vhal.org.