Idaho Scam Jam educates the public about popular criminal activities

Idahoans are having an identity crisis.

Last year, the Federal Trade Commission logged 1,076 complaints of identity theft in Idaho, said Brett DeLange, Idaho’s Deputy Attorney General. 

“Identity theft is something that affects all sorts of people,” said DeLange. “The criminals come in a variety of ways — most often through emails. But people are calling over the phone with the intent of obtaining confidential information that they can use for a variety of reasons.”

Nationally, con artists victimize more than 1 in 10 Americans a year and often target older people who have spent decades accruing assets. Once a criminal has that key information they will try to access bank and savings accounts or open loans — including credit cards — under false pretenses. The goal is simple: steal as much money as possible.

Some imposter scams are done over the the phone, such as the Internal Revenue Service scam. Victims are told they are being sued by the IRS, and they face being arrested or suffering some other penalty if they don’t pay immediately.  

“People need to hang up,” said DeLange. “The IRS does not call people. If you’re really concerned, hang up and call the IRS back.”

The popular grandparent scam is also a telephone attack — in which the caller tells grandparents that their grandchildren are in trouble and need money wired to them. Victims are told their loved ones are in jail or in a hospital, and they need money right way.

“They know who you are, but you don’t know who they are,” said DeLange. “They may even sound official. Hang up and call their mom or dad. You can call the sheriff’s department and they can help you determine if there is a real issue.”

DeLange said con artists repeatedly use similar scams because they generate money for organized crime.

“These scams are not going away,” he said. “These crooks are making money on it, and when someone gets taken, they’re often embarrassed so they don’t report it.”

DeLange will be speaking at a fraud prevention conference hosted by the Idaho Scam Jam Alliance on Thursday, May 19 at the Coeur d’Alene Inn. The daylong conference begins at 8 a.m. and focuses on identity theft, Medicare fraud and abuse, top scams, and financial exploitation.  The event is free to attend.

The Idaho Scam Jam Alliance is a broad-based coalition of nonprofit organizations and state agencies. Their goal is educating the public to recognize identity theft and fraud, and to arm it with the tools needed to combat identity crimes.

For more information: http://states.aarp.org/id_scamjams/