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Seminars' aim is to help elderly not get scammed

Gulfport Stetson's College of Law is offering the free sessions until the end of its spring term .

By ABHA BHATTARAI
Published October 22, 2006

How to project yourself from fraud

Cpl. Bill Norton, with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office economic crimes division, offers five tips for preventing fraud and identity theft:

1. Don't give out your date of birth, Social Security number, birthplace, or other information that will help someone identify you.

"Treat your personal information like it's gold," Norton said. "You wouldn't just give out gold, so you shouldn't give your information out either."

2. Be wary of offers that seem to good to be true.

3. Never give out bank account information.

4. Be careful about who you add to joint accounts and about disclosing too much information to family members or caregivers.

5. Before you allow someone to make home repairs, call Consumer Affairs at 464-6200 to make sure workers are licensed.

The Florida sun attracts thousands of visitors every winter.

Many are retired or elderly, but a few are neither - they're simply around to swindle money through scams, fraud and identity theft.

"Like everyone else, the bad guys come down here in the winter," said Pinellas County sheriff's Cpl. Bill Norton. Fraud "picks up around now" and continues until March, he said.

Stetson University's College of Law is offering free seminars to educate the elderly about common home repair scams, identity theft and bank fraud.

The sessions began several weeks ago and will continue through the spring semester, coordinator Becky Morgan said.

"This generation of elders grew up in a time when your word meant something, when your handshake meant something," she said.

"They were taught to be very polite, trusting and helpful, so it's hard for them to understand that (fraud) can happen so quickly and easily."

Plus, Norton said, they are common targets because they are usually "financially connected."

"They've got money, but they aren't always the type who go out and periodically check their credit," Norton said. "By the time they realize something is wrong, it's two months later."

Education and prevention are important because fraud is difficult to detect, said Karen Williams, an elder consumer protection fellow at the law school.

"The policing authority are not equipped to handle this," she said. "Not only do they not have the manpower and knowledge, but they just don't understand the victims' experiences."

After the seminars, law students will help attendees sign up to minimize unsolicited credit card and insurance offers.

"Not only do we want to give them information, but we also want to take care of them," Williams said. "The elderly need new ways to protect themselves."

[Last modified October 21, 2006, 17:50:14]