The attorney general urges older Americans to report fraud to the DOJsNational Elder Fraud Hotlineat 833-FRAUD-11 (833-372-8311).
Heres more from our discussion with Garland.
(The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.)
Well, I think that the pernicious attempt to target older Americansisoverwhelming.
Theres no doubt about that.
And so we are mounting resources in response to that.
We have 20 U.S.
I think there is a large problem, and we are responding with a large reaction.
Theyre telling you that your grandchild is under arrest somewhere and needs money for bail.
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AARP emphasizes the need for fraud victims to report these crimes.
Yes, I urge reporting.
But prevention is the very first thing.
Nobody should be calling you out of the blue and asking you for your Social Security number.
Nobody should be calling you out of the blue and asking you for your checking account number.
Nobody should be calling you out of the blue and asking for your email address.
What are some of the latest fraud-fighting challenges that concern you most?
Unfortunately, crime is innovative and constantly changing.
This is a problem for us and a problem for everyone.
People use the wordcryptoas if its a magic thing, and weve seen recently that its not so magic.
But it sounds cool and high-tech.
Theres no such thing as a free lunch.
Secondly, people may venture to get you to convert your money into cryptocurrency and then send it somewhere.
Its free money for you.
Well give you 20 percent or 30 percent.
And thats a way of money laundering.
