Older Americans were brought up in a long-gone era of simplicity and trust. Scammers are exploiting technology to concoct an ever-growing flood of frauds based on our poor understanding of modern telecommunications and our ingrained respect of authority. The crooks who make a handsome living stealing from seniors are up day and night, all over the globe, coming up with more schemes to drain our bank accounts and government benefits through fear and deception.

SNAP BENEFIT SCAMS

If you are a SNAP program recipient, there is a scam circulating where victims receive a text promising a $1,000 immediate payment in benefits by clicking a link. Click the link and you are delivered to a fake website that harvests all your personal information including your social security number, banking information, SNAP benefit PIN number and SNAP benefit card number. In Ohio, the SNAP benefit card functions like a bank debit card that is used to receive and spend benefits. If you receive a text saying $1,000 is waiting for you, delete the text. It’s just another scam.

LOST PET SCAMS

It’s a good idea to know where your pet is all the time. Unsuspecting pet owners are being contacted by scammers who claim to be calling from an animal shelter or humane society, reporting your pet has been hit by a car and needs immediate veterinary surgery. There isn’t a minute to waste! After you’ve been led to believe your pet is in dire straits, you are transferred to a “financial representative” who instructs you to send thousands by wire transfer, cash, cryptocurrency or credit card. If you get a call saying your pet has been injured, hang up and call the organization back, using the number on its website, and ask, “Hey, do you have my animal?”

ATM CARD SWAPPING SCAM

It’s always a good idea to be wary of anyone hanging around an ATM. Several scammers were recently arrested in Clearwater, Florida, where they would pick an ATM and jam the card slot with coins. Customers would try to use the jammed ATM and were quickly approached by the scammers who offered to help out. In the blink of an eye, the crooks switched the victims’ cards with fake ones, memorized the real PIN numbers, and returned later to remove the coins and pull money from the victims’ accounts. Look for copycat scammers to start doing this in our area.

FAKE COURT LETTERS

Thousands of letters are being mailed in the name of the U.S. Supreme Court, signed by Chief Justice Roberts and Associate Justice Sotomayor. The letters look real but are completely bogus, and all of them warn you are under investigation. The letters are followed by a text or phone call from the scammers, lending an air of authenticity to the whole charade. You are instructed to log into a fake Social Security website, which captures your Social Security account password, banking and credit card information. If you receive a letter from the U.S. Supreme Court, toss it in the trash.

TAP AND PAY SCAMS

Criminals keep up with the times, and have figured out a few nifty ways to steal your money using tap and pay. Be aware of the following tricks:

• Folks are pretending to be vendors at flea markets, events or festivals who only have a tap-and-pay machine. The scammers rush the buying process, counting on you tapping without checking the business name or transaction amounts.

• Imposters are going door-to-door selling items, like candy bars, to raise money for charitable causes. You are told that you can only pay through their portable tap-and-pay machine. You tap, and the scammer deftly adds a zero or two to your purchase as the machine dips out of sight. Crooks who do this change neighborhoods often. If anyone shows up on your doorstep with a sob story and a tap-and-pay machine, say, “Not interested,” and close the door.

You might say to yourself, “Jeez, it seems like these scams are just getting worse.” You’re exactly right — they are getting worse. Your only defenses are self-awareness, and keeping up with new scams and how they work. Older adults in the Valley may be getting up there in years, but we weren’t raised as fools. Reading columns such as this one give you an edge.

Thanksgiving is here, so enjoy your holidays with family and friends, and take a minute to reflect on how lucky we, as seniors, are to have grown up in an era of trust and simplicity, along with the best pizza in the United States!

Dave Long of Poland, a Youngstown State University graduate, is a retired public affairs officer with U.S. Customs and Border Protection who later worked as an Elder Scam Prevention Outreach specialist in Rochester, N.Y., before moving back to the Mahoning Valley.