Justice Department Tackles Mail Scams

• By: USAging
• On: 08/23/2016 12:05:07
• In: Policy & Advocacy

Read on for details including resources you can use in your local efforts to protect older adults from financial exploitation. 

The multi-agency effort, which includes a wide range of enforcement actions (e.g., criminal charges, economic sanctions) along with a public education push, is intended to combat a global network of mass mailing fraud schemes that collectively have defrauded millions of older or vulnerable adults across the U.S. out of hundreds of millions of dollars. 

“Every year, fraudulent mail schemes target millions of Americans with false promises of wealth and riches, swindling hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch in Thursday's press release. “Today's actions send a clear message that the Department of Justice is determined to hold the perpetrators of these harmful schemes accountable. And they make unmistakably clear that we are committed to protecting our people from exploitation—especially our older citizens, who are so often the focus of these shameful ruses.”

For more information on the effort and resources you can use in your community:

DOJ Webpage on Mass Mailing Fraud
What n4a and others are doing to help the effort
DOJ Consumer Protection Branch Flyer       
Federal Trade Commission's Mail Fraud Scams Flyer
Examples of Solicitations Used in Fraud Scams