While the holiday season can often bring a renewed spirit of kindness and giving, it also often brings with it a rise in scams targeting older Americans, a trend both concerning and increasingly prevalent. On Monday, I was glad to be joined by my good friend Ann Marie Cook from Lifespan to outline our ongoing work to protect our community from these bad actors.

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), older adults lose an estimated $3 billion annually to scams, with an uptick during the holidays due to fake charities, fraudulent online shopping deals, and Medicare-related phishing schemes. The FTC has a number of resources available, not only to educate members of our community on the types of scams they should be on the lookout for, but also providing ways to report any potential scams they come across this holiday season.

To learn more about common scams, how to avoid them, and some helpful tools to keep you and your family safe, watch my video here or visit my website.