50 Ways to Protect Your Identity in a Digital Age: New Financial Threats You Need to Know and How to Avoid Them, Second Edition

15. Identity Theft and the Elderly

Why the Elderly?

The elderly are often particularly targeted for identity theft. Identity theft and fraud against the elderly is a particularly insidious problem because, in many instances, when the senior realizes that he or she has been scammed or made the victim of identity theft, he or she is often hesitant to report the crime out of embarrassment or shame and the belief that it is just another example of their losing their mental acuity. In fact, anyone can be scammed or can be a victim of identity theft. Very intelligent people were scammed, for instance, by Bernie Madoff. A recent study by MetLife has shown a dramatic increase in scams perpetrated against people over the age of 60 in the past few years ...