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ACCORDING TO THE NATIONAL CONSUMERS LEAGUE'S NATIONAL FRAUD INFORMATION CENTER,
nearly a third of all telemarketing fraud victims are age 60 or older. Studies by AARP show that most older telemarketing fraud victims don’t realize that the voice on the phone could belong to someone who is trying to steal their money.
Many consumers believe that salespeople nice young men or women simply trying to make a living. They may be pushy or exaggerate the offer, but they’re basically honest. While that’s true for most telemarketers, there are some whose intentions are to rob people, using phones as their weapons. The FBI says that there are thousands of fraudulent telemarketing companies operating in the United States. There are also an increasing number of illegal telemarketers who target U.S. residents from locations in Canada and other countries.
It’s difficult for victims, especially seniors, to think of fraudulent telemarketers’ actions as crimes, rather than hard sells. Many are even reluctant to admit that they have been cheated or robbed by illegal telemarketers.
THE FIRST STEP in helping older people who may be targets is to convince them that fraudulent telemarketers are hardened criminals who don’t care about the pain they cause when they steal someone’s life savings. Once seniors understand that illegal telemarketing is a serious crime—punishable by heavy fines and long prison sentences—they are more likely to hang up and report the fraud to law enforcement authorities. They can help catch the crooks and put them in jail—where they belong.
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THE SECOND STEP in fighting telemarketing fraud against seniors is to understand why they are particularly vulnerable. It’s a myth that victims are incompetent, lonely, or isolated. In fact, AARP research shows that many older victims are active people who are simply lured by false promises of great deals or ways to add to their "nest eggs." Fraudulent telemarketers take advantage of the fact that:
It’s difficult to tell whether someone is legitimate. Good salespeople are convincing, but so are crooks. They use many of the same sales tactics—being friendly, getting people excited, creating a sense of urgency;
Seniors tend to be trusting. Since they have difficulty imagining that some telemarketers are criminals, they’re more likely to give them the benefit of the doubt;
It’s easy to wear people down. Seniors are targeted relentlessly—some get more than 20 calls a day from scam artists. They may also receive dozens of mailings every week asking them to call about sweepstakes and other offers;
We all want to believe. Who doesn’t want to win a valuable prize, take a free trip, or strike it rich on an investment? People want to believe that it’s their lucky day, and may react with anger or suspicion when others question their optimism; and,
It’s hard to hang up. Many seniors feel that it’s impolite to hang up on people. Swindlers know how to take control of the conversation and are prepared to tell any lies necessary to keep potential victims on the phone.

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