- Yeah, they say age is just a number, but when scammers and hackers here in Charlotte and elsewhere, get your other numbers, your social security number, your credit card number, even your phone number, well the older you are could mean the more vulnerable you are.

(upbeat music) - This was one of the scams that actually ran about four years ago.

Look at the differences.

You spot it?

- [Jeff] Scam Expert, John Tudor is teaching these AARP members what fraud looks like, what fraud sounds like.

- 'Cause we talk so many times a day, every day, I thought I knew 'em fairly well, which made me trust him.

- [Jeff] And how to recognize the red flags for themselves.

♪ Sending out an SOS So seniors know when to send out their own SOS.

- If it is unexpected communication.

- I get a lot of calls every day.

- If it has an emotional reaction, gets you worked up.

- Say, "I need your help."

- And if it demands an immediate action.

- It went to my account started moving money in front of my eyes.

♪ Sending out an SOS - [Jeff] Lynette Yankson tells other seniors in the group how she lost $500 in just a few minutes, on a call with a fake customer service line.

- So I'm talking to these people who I thought were customer service, they were not.

They were scammers.

- The goal is to get you to take action, jump in, and do something without stepping back and thinking, "Hmm, could this be a fraud?"

- [Jeff] Tudor adds that some of the scams are so common and so successful, that they even have names, like the so-called "Grandparents Scam."

- Someone poses as the victim's grandchild.

Okay?

And they're in trouble.

Alright, now check this out.

This is an action recording of a Grandfather Scam phone call.

- [Recording] "Hey Grandpa, how are you?

"I broke my nose.

"I was in a car accident.

"I'm in the county jail for reckless endangerment.

"Grandpa, I need your help, really.

"I love you.

I'm sorry."

(gentle piano music) - I mean, it's the same story.

- Yeah, it is.

Yeah.

Well, I've never heard about it before.

- [Jeff] Marvin Rouse says at least twice now, he's gotten similar calls here at his home home on his cell phone.

He called you Grandpa.

- Yeah, grandpa.

He said they was involved in a wreck.

And he said, "If I don't have money to post, "or pay a lawyer or something, "they're gonna lock me up."

- [Jeff] But what the scammers didn't know, is that Rouse doesn't have a grandson, only granddaughters.

He figures cash is what the scammers were calling for, but it's a story that he wasn't falling for.

- It was a good scam is the only way I can say it.

- [Jeff] Why'd they call you?

That's the question.

I guess I'm targeted for how old I am.

You know.

- I think about my grandmother.

And she used to guard that checkbook with her life.

Right?

- [Jeff] Mark Henry is founder and CEO of Alloy Wealth here in Charlotte, which manages the money of retirees, who risk losing their entire life savings to investment scammers, looking to cash in as seniors cash out of their pensions and 401 Ks, and social security benefits.

- They retired, had all these dreams, everything's great, and then someone calls with the right scam at the right time.

The internet, these scams are the new wild west.

- [Jeff] Henry says a lot of his clients complain about fake IRS calls threatening legal action, especially at tax time.

- [Recording] To get more information about this case file, please call immediately on our department number, 253-214-4667.

This call is officially a final notice from IRS, Internal Revenue Services.

- Understand what they're trying to do on the other line.

They're trying to get you to divulge information that allows them to get access to whatever it is they want, which is typically bank information, social security information, social security numbers.

They can apply for credit.

All the above.

- [Jeff] Henry adds that too many seniors are too trusting of someone on the phone who sounds official.

They're too willing to share the details that scammers are looking for.

And often, they're too embarrassed to tell even their closest family members that they've been fooled.

- Things to look for are unnecessary spending.

They're going, "Hey, what are you doing, Mom?"

"Oh, I'm going over to the bank."

"Well, you were just there a couple days ago."

"Yeah, yeah, I gotta go by.

"I gotta go by."

"What's going on?"

You have to look, because again, when they get in involved in the right scams, that's a train wreck.

(gentle piano music continues) - I was devastated.

Absolutely destroyed.

- [Jeff] Tudor ads that when audiences see the victims in his videos, they see themselves.

(gentle piano music continues) But it doesn't have to be that way.

- Better to put the responsibility on the ones who deserve it, the criminals.

Being the target of a scam, and losing money, or losing sensitive information is not the victim's fault.

Okay?

It's the fault of the criminal who perpetrated it.

(gentle piano music) - Yeah.

Tudor ads that a lot of seniors and their families just don't realize how many resources are really out there.

Not just scam workshops like the one we attended, but also online resources, all aimed at making sure that potential targets of scams don't also become victims of scams.