By Christine Holmes, News Director February 24,
2020
State officials are warning Ohioans of a pair of telephone
scams targeting older adults.
On Monday, Governor Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of
Insurance Director Jillian Froment issued a consumer alert cautioning the
public of two scams attempting to steal personal information.
“We have been informed by several of our stakeholder partners
of scams seeking to take advantage of our older Ohioan population,” said
Froment. “I urge people to be extremely cautious when deciding to share their
personal information and to consider contacting organizations directly to
initiate conversation and information sharing.”
One scam targets Medicare beneficiaries who are receiving
recorded phone calls claiming to be from the Social Security Administration
(SSA) as it appears on caller ID. The message tells the call recipient their
SSA account has been suspended and asks them to press the number “1” for more
information.
According to the Ohio Department of Insurance, pressing “1”
does connect the victim to the SSA, but a third party scammer is also on the
line to steal any information shared with the SSA. Beneficiaries are warned
that the SSA will not call them unless it is requested. To verify the
legitimacy of a call, beneficiaries can call the SSA at 1-800-269-027.
Additional information is available at https://faq.ssa.gov/en-us/Topic/article/KA-10018.
“Unfortunately, older adults are one of the most targeted
groups for scammers,” said DeWine. “We want to make sure older Ohioans are
armed with the information they need to protect themselves in case they receive
a suspicious call.”
The second scam targets Ohio Public Employee Retirement
System (OPERS) members, who are reportedly receiving phone calls from a scammer
claiming to be with VIA Benefits and asking for personal information to
establish the member’s prepaid funeral account.
According to the Ohio Department of Insurance, although VIA
Benefits provides certain insurance services, such phone calls are not being
made. Members receiving calls can contact VIA Benefits at 1-844-287-9945 or
OPERS at 1-800-222-7377.
Those living in Ohio that suspect wrongdoing or victimization
can call the Ohio Department of Insurance’s fraud and enforcement hotline at
1-800-686-1527 or contact non-profit Pro Seniors and its fraud-fighting Ohio
Senior Medicare Patrol at 1-800-488-6070.
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