Educate Elder Care Patients and Other Seniors near West Windsor, NJ about Profiling and Targeting

Keeping seniors safe is a job for not just family members, but also elder care providers. There are numerous risks throughout the world and our parents often taught us to look out for them when we were children. As we got older and became adults, the risks became greater and sometimes even more sophisticated.

Today, there are still many risks in the world and some of them are knocking on the door, ringing the phone, or sifting through the email inbox. Many of these scams and fraudulent offers target elderly individuals for a variety of reasons.

The most common reason elderly individuals are targeted more than any other age group with regard to scams is because of their potentially diminished mental capacities as well as loneliness. Telemarketers have known for years that elderly individuals will have a propensity to stay on the phone and keep talking to the telemarketer because of the loneliness they experience throughout the day.

In order to keep the telemarketer on the phone, the elderly individuals would have to agree to purchase items. That is just one small aspect that senior patients should be aware of regarding profiling and targeting.

Other issues include people coming to their door, learning that they are elderly and live alone, and returning as part of a home invasion team. They may force their way into the home to rob the patient and more.

Some people dress up as utility workers to try and gain the confidence of the homeowner. Once the confidence of the homeowner is gained, they may invite the supposedly utility worker into their home where the criminal can scope out the prospects in order to steal from the homeowner.

The elderly individual should never invite anybody into their home unless they specifically know they called to request service. Even then they should contact the phone number they have on hand (not one the supposed utility worker provides to them) to verify the identity and that they should be at their house at that time.

Another common scam that targets elderly individuals can come by email or phone. They may receive an official looking email from their bank or utility company advising them of a problem with their account. They are to click on a link and enter their personal information to verify their identity. In truth, this is a scam seeking their username and password to steal from them.

The more people educate others, especially the elderly about profiling, targeting, and scams, the safer the elderly individual will be, even those who rely on elder care.

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring elder care services near West Windsor,NJ, or the surrounding areas. Please call Independence Home Care today at (609) 642-4085 for more information .