Worried about being scammed? Iowa Fraud Fighters seminar offers good advice

Every year in the US, people are scammed out of 36.5 billion dollars. This type of crime isn't just in major cities or certain states—it's everywhere, including Decorah.  But thanks to Northeast Iowa RSVP, the Iowa Insurance Division, and Decorah Bank & Trust, Decorah area resident Wednesday learned about protecting themselves from these life-changing scams.

IRS scams, technology scams, lottery scams, and counterfeit check scams are the most common type of scams in Iowa.  Although each scam takes a different approach into conning its victim out of money, many of them start the same way: an unsolicited phone call or visitor.

Rick Nance, the RSVP volunteer who led the seminar, emphasized the appropriateness of not answering any phone call from an unrecognized number and not answering the door to a stranger.

Nance put it bluntly, "There's no room for Midwest nice in your bank account." He continued, "Once you answer their call, you're in their system."  And the scammers in that system work relentlessly to get a person to hand over personal information, bank account information, and more.  One story that was shared told the details about an elderly man who was called and threatened with arrest if he didn't pay a certain amount of money to the scammer.  The fraud victim was called more than 60 times in two hours.

Once a person's name has been "marked" after a scam artist has had a successful transaction, the name is often sold to other scammers who will then approach the person using a different tactic.

The one-hour seminar highlighted many ways to maintain safety when it comes to scams. First, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is neither good nor true. Always double check any investment with a trusted, reputable organization.  Nance said, "Bankers are on the front line of defense against scams and fraud, so ask!"

Second, don't let your emotions, like excitement for a limited-time good deal or fear of false legal action, cloud your judgement. Nance said, "No legitimate place will ever call and say something must be done right now."

Victims of fraud are encouraged to let someone know right away. It is important that victims know there is no reason to be embarrassed and that there are resources to help figure out what can be done.