By Frank Sinatra, AAP Editor
As part of their ongoing commitment to public safety, Pennsauken Township Committee has begun reaching out to senior citizens about how to avoid scams that are specifically targeting their community. During a special presentation at Stonegate II at Saint Stephen’s, Township Committeeman Marco DiBattista was joined by representatives from the Pennsauken Township Police Department, Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“Our concern is to make sure our seniors are prepared for any scams, anybody trying to take advantage of them,” said Township Committeeman Marco DiBattista, who serves as Pennsauken’s Director of Public Safety and the Liaison to Seniors. “We want to make sure that everybody is aware of what scams are out there and what to do if something happens.”
In 2022, 88,262 victims over the age of 60 were impacted by fraud. Whether by mail, over the phone, or online, total losses in these schemes hit $3.1 billion. The average dollar loss per victim was $35,1010, with over 5,000 senior victims losing more than $100,000. Scams targeting seniors can take many forms: sweepstakes letters asking victims to pay taxes up front for a supposed big payout; an email from a scammer disguised as a trustworthy source looking to get sensitive information; or a call from someone pretending to be from law enforcement or another government agency asking for payment in gift cards to avoid prosecution or arrest. The easiest way to avoid being taken advantage of is to slow down by hanging up the call, not responding to the letter, and not clicking suspicious links in any emails. Be skeptical and do independent research using trusted sources. And never share sensitive information like Social Security numbers, bank account details, or credit card numbers with strangers or unfamiliar websites.
“The safest thing is if you don’t know whose number it is, I wouldn’t answer the call,” said Committeeman DiBattista. “A lot of times, these people are phishing. They have no idea who is attached to that number when you pick up. You hang up the phone, you don’t think about it and move on. You have to worry about your safety first.”
Feedback from participants was extremely positive, and Pennsauken Township officials plan to offer more of these presentations in the coming months.
“We appreciate everybody that came out,” said DiBattista. “We’re going to have more of these seminars in the future so that our seniors can be educated about these scams and be safe.”
For more information on how seniors can protect themselves, as well as to report a scam so that it can be investigated, visit ic3.gov. You can also contact the Pennsauken Township Police Department at (856) 488-0080.
