How to Protect Seniors in a Senior Services NJ Center Against Identity Theft

Education is key when teaching seniors living in a senior services NJ center against identity theft. Encourage seniors to share the details of any suspicious mail, emails, or phone calls with family members or staff at the senior services NJ center. Family and staff can help determine the legitimacy of the claim.

Below are some tips to teach seniors on how to protect their identity.

Teach Senior Services NJ Residents the Importance of a Paper Shredder

Simply throwing away mail does not suffice in today’s world. People of all ages need to learn the importance of safeguarding their identity. Mail may contain just our name and address, or our bank account information, which may be all a person needs to claim someone’s identity. Teaching seniors how to use a paper shredder eliminates the worry of someone stealing an identity from discarded mail. It is advised that senior services NJ centers have a paper shredder available for public use.

Educate Seniors in a Senior Services NJ Center How to Identify Con Artists

A few good points to teach seniors in a senior services NJ center is that no banks, credit cards, or any business for that matter will ask for your social security number, bank account information, or password via email or phone ever! Another idea to keep in mind is the philosophy, that if it is too good to be true then it probably is. A common identity theft email will be written from a “lawyer” and states that a diseased family member living abroad has passed away and left you a large sum of money. Before you can access the money, you must send fifty dollars overseas. The requests for money never ends and can cost people thousands of dollars. Another type of scam is informing the senior they have won the lottery and ask for their social security number. Teach seniors to delete these emails or hang the phone, as these scammers only cause financial problems for the senior living in a senior services NJ center.

If the senior receives a phone call, letter in the mail, or an email that may seem legitimate, encourage them to contact the company directly. Have the senior inquire directly to the company in order to validate the message they received and validate the claim.

Teach Seniors in Senior Services NJ Centers to Check Their Financials Regulary

Take some time to schedule an “identity protection” workshop at the senior services NJ center that teaches seniors what to do to ensure they protect their finances. Teach seniors how to set up check their bank account online as well as their credit report to make sure all their finances are in order.

The education session can also inform seniors on additional identity protection measures. For example, it is important for seniors in a senior services NJ center to know they should not sign the back of the card, rather state “see photo ID” on the back, which prompts the company to ask for photo ID to validate the purchase.

Encourage Seniors in a Senior Services NJ Center to Purchase a Safety Deposit Box and PO Box

Have seniors send their mail to a PO box to help prevent from someone tampering with mail while it is in the mailbox. A safety deposit box ensures a seniors items are safe while they are living in a senior services NJ facility. At the very least, encourage seniors to purchase a personal safe to store all personal information such as social security cards, checkbooks, and Medicare Cards.