A host of state and town officials, including Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, served lunch at the Guilford Senior Center on Oct. 6 as a platform for a discussion on potential crimes focused on older adults. Tong spoke about a number of issues facing seniors, discussed options for assistance, and promoted the state’s Elder Justice Hotline.

According to the Office of the Attorney General (AG), in cooperation with the Coalition for Elder Justice in Connecticut, the Elder Justice Hotline was launched in 2021. The AG’s office said the goals of the program are to help older adults in seeking information and assistance for age-centric issues facing seniors.

Those can range from age-based discrimination in the workplace to scams and frauds, elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, said Tong during his remarks. Of primary concern for his office, according to Tong, are phone and computer scams, which have been steadily increasing in recent years.

Tong noted that despite the fixed income of many seniors, scammers target this demographic because they have money.

“I know it doesn’t feel like it to many of you folks sometimes, but if you get social security, if you have some sort of savings, if you some kind of pension or retirement payments—you have a steady stream of money coming through the door. And the scammers know that; that’s why they go after all of you,” Tong said.

According to Tong, “romantic” scams against the elderly are the most prevalent kind of scam for seniors. Criminals can tease information out of social media accounts and phone calls without a victim even recognizing their lapse, or the mounting prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

“Scammers collect information while you talk. You may not realize that, but you can provide them with information. Nowadays, this is really scary with the advent of AI because they are recording your voice. They can then use that to develop further scams,” Tong said. “It is easy to tell when someone is alone, and it’s easy to tell when someone is recently alone. They can find out and exploit people who are recently single. They have researched you online and put a lot of effort into these scams. These types of scams can go on for a year or two in many instances.”

Tong said even a member of his own family was scammed out of a significant amount of money, as these criminals can be very convincing when pulling off these types of crimes. According to Tong, the “overpayment” scam is a growing problem.

Criminals will send money seemingly for a legitimate service or interaction, but send too much money or ask if you’d like a refund for recent services in exchange for a favorable review or another service by you. Once bank account access has been given, a check sent, or funds wired, thieves can manipulate your accounts and quickly steal significant amounts of money.

“Everyone, anyone can get scammed. There is a scam for everyone; there really is,” said Tong.

Anyone who thinks that they, a family member, or a friend may have been scammed or that someone is attempting a scam, can call the state Elder Justice Hotline at 860-808-5555.