Among the many problems facing senior citizens is that of trying to pay for their necessary medications while trying to live on a fixed income. This problem drew the attention of Congress, which passed a prescription drug plan last year that was designed to help older Americans with their drug bills. The plan is a complicated one that allows Americans to enroll in a government-sponsored plan or any one of a number of other plans that are administered by private corporations. The plan, while well intentioned, has drawn criticism for being expensive and for being complicated, as many senior citizens have been unable to determine how to best make use of the program.
The fact that the program is complicated has opened the door for identity thieves to take advantage of the program's participants. The thieves have been calling senior citizens on the telephone, posing as representatives of companies that can help people enroll in the plan that is best for them. The caller then asks for personal information from the victim in order to better assess how to help them. There is no help forthcoming; the thief is simply using the call as an opportunity to steal the victim's name, address, Social Security number and credit card number. Once they have that, the thieves can go about obtaining loans, credit and merchandise in the victim's name.
This identity theft scam can be easily avoided, as can most such scams that make use of the telephone or e-mail. Here are a few tips that may help: