Slow down. Breathe. Think before you give out any of your personal or financial information to anyone you don’t know.

Those were the key pieces of advice Laura Kriegermeyer, elder rights coordinator from Heritage Agency on Aging, presented at the adult speaker series at Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center Thursday, April 3.

“The key to so many of the scams that take in the elderly is the need to do something immediately,” Kriegermeyer said.

And Kriegermeyer freely admitted she was one of those who fell for a scam herself, even as she teaches others about the practice herself.

“It was a scam pertaining to applying for student loan relief,” Kriegermeyer said. “The person claimed to be with an agency that was representing the consolidation of loans, and as I went through the process it wasn’t until they got to a step where they were asking for a payment upfront that I realized I’d been scammed.”

While Kriegermeyer hadn’t paid them, she had provided information to them.

“It is very easy to get sucked into a scam,” Kriegermeyer said. “It hits all sorts of socioeconomic statuses, it hits all levels of education.”

One in five people fall to a scam that compromises their financial information.

Heritage Agency on Aging investigates all sorts of financial exploitation of seniors, including scams, but also unauthorized use of an elder’s funds to benefit someone else. That can include land or documents.

Another key point of advice she had – never sign something on the spot if you don’t know what it is or how it will impact you.

Even when it comes to having a power of attorney, elderly people can revoke that right at any time if they feel they have been taken advantage of.

“A medical or financial power of attorney should be used for those moments when you can no longer make decisions for yourself,” Kriegermeyer said.

Financial abuse is the most reported type of abuse elder abuse, impacting billions of individuals per year. Last year alone, the reported amounts were $3.4 billion.

“A lot of those abuses are not reported,” Kriegermeyer said.

Being a victim of a scam can be detrimental to the health and wellness of the elderly, with victims three times more likely to face mortality than non-victims, according to the Journal of Medical Associations.

When it comes to exploitation of the elderly, 90 percent of the cases involve family members, loved ones or caregivers than it is people they do not know.

“Those numbers may be ticking upwards from unknown people due to the number of scams that happen,” Kriegermeyer said.

In Iowa, elder abuse was not criminalized until 2022, one of the last states in the nation to pass laws to do so.

Kriegermeyer said that the number of scams that are happening are always changing.

“One of the things I said before the program is that I almost need to update this slide, as there will be a new one happening at that point,” Kriegermeyer said.

One of the recent ones that many in attendance had heard or experienced was the toll road scam, where a message is sent out you are being investigated for not paying a toll or fee in a larger city.

Others included the UPS notification for a package you never ordered.

One attendee gave advice on circumventing the grandparent scam (where someone posing as a grandchild contacts their grandparent for money) – make sure you have a code word between you and your family to know if something is legitimate.

“AI has gotten especially out of control that they can make mimics of someone’s voice and social media presence,” Kriegermeyer said.

Another common one is people mimicking companies like Alliant Energy or Mid-American Energy and demanding payment of energy bills.

“Mid-American is not going to cajole you for payment immediately,” Kriegermeyer said. “They’re more likely to shut your power off for non-payment than continually harass you by phone. They’ll reach out numerous other ways as well. Anytime some one is trying to rush you to do something while you’re on the phone with them, that’s most likely a scam.”

If there is a doubt if a representative is calling from where they say they are calling from Kriegermeyer said hang up and call that agency yourself on numbers you know to be accurate.

If someone does get involved in a financial scam, make a report to law enforcement agencies as soon as possible about the scam. Use non-emergency numbers to report the scam to those agencies.

How can elderly protect themselves?

Assign a power of attorney, guardian, conservator or financial advisor for when you can’t make decisions on your own.

Know your rights when signing documents.

Don’t be afraid to speak up.

Think before giving out card information or personal information.

Freeze your credit if not applying for loans or lines of credit.

Consult with Heritage Agency of Aging, local ombudsman, attorneys or doctors about any concerns.