"Fraud Watch Friday" Events Fight Back Against Scams

REGISTER HERE for the month's session on Friday, May 17th at 10:30am.

Would you like to learn more about how to protect yourself from online scammers and criminals? Could you use answers to your questions on personal Internet security? How do I keep my bank account safe? How can I recognize scam email or text? These are the types of questions we answer on AARP Washington’s Fraud Watch Fridays.

To help fight back against scammers, AARP Washington is hosting an online event each month. Led by volunteers from the AARP Fraud Watch Network, the sessions are held on the third Friday of each month, starting at 10:30 a.m., on Zoom. The sessions are also live on Facebook (where they are available for later viewing). We cover the latest topics in the field, such as robocall scams, Amazon scams, email phishing, phony texts, romance scams, home repair scams, frauds targeting veterans and more.

"Con-artists are incredibly sophisticated, but fortunately consumers can avoid many of their tactics by adopting some relatively simple precautions," says Fraud Watch Network volunteer Kay Tomlinson. "This is especially true when it comes to cyber fraud. I hope our tidbits of information on frauds and how to avoid them will help FWF participants develop what I call a 'fraud fighter mindset' where they skeptically examine every email, text, phone call and interaction."

While anyone can be targeted by fraud, older Americans are often victims. In 2021, impostor scams and identity theft were the top two types of fraud Washington state consumers reported to the Federal Trade Commission.

"We hope the Fraud Watch Fridays will keep our participants aware of how fraud schemes work, how to lessen their own chances of being victimized, and will keep them aware of new types of schemes which constantly arise," said Tomlinson.

Register here to join in the next Fraud Watch Friday session on May 17th at 10:30am, live on Zoom.

For more information, email aarpwa@aarp.org.