The Grandparent Scam is one of many scams targeting the elderly. A grandparent gets a call (or sometimes an email) from someone who claims to be a relative, usually a grandson or granddaughter, in distress - they lost their wallet and are stuck without identification and money in another country. The caller states it’s an emergency and asks for money to be sent immediately, wired to them through a friend’s account so that they can get home. If the money can’t be wired, they ask the grandparent to purchase $1,000 Visa gift cards to be used as a means to get back home. Oh, and don’t tell their parents because they’ll get upset. Any concerned grandparent would be alarmed and comply without hesitation. Unfortunately, from January 2020 to June 2021 the FBI Internet Complaint Center received over 650 reports of “grandparent scams” nationwide, resulting in more than $13 million in losses.
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