The events have included workshops, distribution of literature, speeches, and sponsorship of federal legislation to combat the problem. Mail fraud and telemarketing scams targeting senior citizens is a problem in desperate need of attention. Some companies promoting questionable products or unwinnable contests single out senior citizens as their victims. The actual amount may be much higher, as telemarketing fraud is part of the nation s underground economy. Not all losses have been clearly documented.
Some consumers are too embarrassed to report that they ve been defrauded.
Others fail to recognize that they have been victimized. Older Americans are frequently targeted by fraudulent telemarketers because they are generally more often at home, they may be more trusting, and they may be led to view a smooth-talking telemarketer as a friend rather than as someone preying on their life savings. One of the most effective ways to protect senior citizens from scam artists is to educate them on how fraudulent information is presented. Abercrombie co-sponsored legislation to authorize the U.S. Administration on Aging to conduct outreach programs to educate seniors on how to protect themselves from telemarketing fraud. The AARP research indicates that the critical difference between victims and non-victims is the ability to recognize mail and telemarketing fraud as a crime.