January 2007

Lifespan Receives Grant for Outbound Scams & Fraud Education Call Center

Rochester NY: Lifespan has received a $200,000 national grant to open a call center dedicated to educating older adults from around the country about scams delivered by telephone, mail and the Internet.

During the next year, Lifespan volunteers and staff will call 100,000 older adults who are known or potential victims of telemarketing scams. They are persons identified by AARP as being at risk because they have already been scammed or because they fit criteria that may make them more vulnerable. Their names may have been found on a call list that was seized when a telemarketing ring was exposed, or they are known to be isolated or recently widowed. Callers will educate about fraudulent telemarketing and provide tips on how to avoid being victimized by scams.

“What we will do through the Consumer Fraud Prevention Project is fight back against those criminals who promote false promises of grand prizes, a ‘second chance’ to win an online auction, or stories about international lotteries. We are going to turn the tables on these criminals, and speak directly to consumers with warnings about the current scams and tips on avoiding harm,” said Ann Marie Cook, president/CEO of Lifespan.

“Financial losses in later life are harder, if not impossible to recoup, and in a society which equates money with choice, con artists are not only robbing bank accounts, they also are potentially robbing people of their independence,” Cook added.

The majority of the 100,000 calls will be made by trained volunteers in a peer to peer approach. “Volunteers provide the power for our project” said Maureen Murphy, project coordinator, and we asking anyone interested in this topic to call us about volunteering for as little as six hours a month.”

Lifespan has almost 20 years experience in the field of elder abuse and financial exploitation. For more information about the project or to become a volunteer, contact Maureen Murphy at 585-244-8400.

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