Pebble Beach, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Hacked Facebook Account

A woman holding her hands over the shoulder of another person.


There are too many elder abuse scams to count on all ten fingers, but if you pay attention and don’t give out any personal information or access to your bank accounts, you should be fine.  The latest one that AARP heard about was a woman who got a Facebook message, allegedly from her nephew, saying “Auntie.  I found this great investment. I’ve doubled my money.  She clicked on the link and invested $12,000 which was turned into BitCoin and vanished into the ether.  It turns out that her nephew’s Facebook account had been hacked and the fraudsters were sending out these messages to friends and family.

Monterey, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Working From Home Scam

A man helping an older woman walk with a cane.


There are so many online scams to watch out for it just gives me a headache.  One of the latest discovered by AARP involved a woman who was offered a job that she could do from home.  They sent her a W-9 form and a check for $3,000.  After she deposited the check, she was instructed to transfer $1,900 via a Bitcoin ATM to “ensure their financial linkup was secure.â€Â  After she made the transfer, her bank called her to inform her the check was fake.

Monterey, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Working From Home Scam

A woman and nurse talking to each other.


There are so many online scams to watch out for it just gives me a headache.  One of the latest discovered by AARP involved a woman who was offered a job that she could do from home.  They sent her a W-9 form and a check for $3,00.  After she deposited the check, she was instructed to transfer $1,900 via a Bitcoin ATM to “ensure their financial linkup was secure.â€Â  After she made the transfer, her bank called her to inform her the check was fake.

Monterey, CA Elder Abuse Victims Send Their Tormentor To Prison

A pile of money sitting next to stacks of cash.


John Lloyd Osborne IV, himself almost a senior at 64 years of age, was sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to four counts of theft from an elderly person, one count of theft from a dependent adult, one count of forgery, one count of identity theft, one count of using fraud in the offer or sale of a security and one count of conspiracy to destroy evidence.  Back in 2006, Osborne solicited $250K from one elder victim to invest in a shell company that never did anything.  In 2010 and 2011, he used false pretenses to solicit $100K from one victim and $5,000 from another.  In 2015, he obtained power of attorney over a dependent adult who was unable to care for himself.  He refinanced the victim’s house and paid himself $250K.  Then in 2018, he sold the worthless company to someone else for $200K.  How brazen!  You would be amazed at how easily some seniors are scammed out of their life savings.

Pebble Beach, CA Elder Abuse Scams Available At AARP Website

A woman and an older person sitting on the couch


Residents of wealthy pockets of Monterey County like Carmel, Pacific Grove and Pebble Beach suffer from being prime targets for scammers, and you would be surprised at the number of people who fall for them and lose thousands of dollars.  Although we try to alert our clients on this blog as we become aware of them, there are just too many to track.  One useful tool to get real-time info on the latest fraud is to go to the interactive Scam-Tracking Map.  Go to www.aarp.org/scammap  and enter your zip code and it will pull up a list of frauds which have been reported to law enforcement and the AARP Fraud Watch Netwok Helpline.

Monterey, CA Elder Abuse Alert : FCC Targets Robocall Scammers

A pile of money sitting next to stacks of cash.


The Federal Communications Commission is accelerating rules aimed at curbing robocalls, many of which are scams targeting senior citizens. The requirements are focusing on “gateway providers,†which are smaller companies that move calls between larger networks. Scammers often use what is known as spoofing, which automatically picks a fake number in your area code. The rules will not allow this, as they require verification that the originating phone number shows up on caller ID.

Monterey, CA AARP Issues Elder Abuse Scam Alerts

A pile of money sitting next to stacks of cash.


The AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline issued an alert regarding a number of scams which are hitting seniors in wealthy pockets of Monterey County like Carmel and Pebble Beach.  Here are some examples of phone call scams you don’t want to fall for:

  1. Your doctor reached out to us because he is concerned with the cancer that runs in your family and would like you to take a DNA swab test.  This test is covered by Medicare, and we just need your Medicare number to process and ship out the order.
  2. This is Apple Inc. We’ve detected Malware on your computer and need you to download AnyDesk onto your phone so we can help you.
  3. This is Agent McMurphy from the IRS and I am calling to tell you that you have a federal arrest warrant for not paying your taxes.
  4. Nana, it’s me, Henry. I was away for spring break and got arrested because my friend was driving while drunk, and we hit a pregnant woman!  Please don’t tell Mom and Dad.  I need your help.
  5. This is Amazon Security calling to inform you that there’s been an attempt to order items on your account. Don’t worry, we can help with the refund, I just need a few pieces of information from you to get this started.
  6. This is PG&E and we are notifying you we are going to shut off your electricity today if you don’t pay your past due bill immediately over the phone.
  7. This is the Social Security Administration and your Social Security check has been frozen due to fraudulent activity. Please press 1 to take care of this matter.

Hear these words?  Hang up!

Source: AARP Bulletin

Monterey, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Classic Car Part Scam

A silver bmw is parked on the street


With car week coming up in August, many Monterey County residents and car aficionados from around the country are sprucing up their classic cars to show off.  But beware if you are in need of a rare car part—make sure that you get it from a reputable dealer.  Scammers have been scouring craigslist and other ads looking for parts.  They will then tell you they have that exact part but after you send them the money you will never get the part.

Pacific Grove, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Classic Car Part Scam

A silver bmw is parked on the street


With car week coming up in August, many Monterey County residents and car aficionados from around the country are sprucing up their classic cars to show off.  But beware if you are in need of a rare car part—make sure that you get it from a reputable dealer.  Scammers have been scouring craigslist and other ads looking for parts.  They will then tell you they have that exact part but after you send them the money you will never get the part.

Pebble Beach, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Classic Car Part Scam : By Derek Baine

A silver bmw is parked on the street


With car week coming up in August, many Monterey County residents and car aficionados from around the country are sprucing up their classic cars to show off.  But beware if you are in need of a rare car part—make sure that you get it from a reputable dealer.  Scammers have been scouring craigslist and other ads looking for parts.  They will then tell you they have that exact part but after you send them the money you will never get the part.