Drawing on real investigative experience, this session covers:
- How your information is stolen — data breaches, compromised cards, and email spoofing/phishing
- Who scammers target — including why seniors and young adults face the greatest risk
- The fastest-growing scams — grandparent scams, romance scams, phishing/smishing, lottery and sweepstakes fraud, cryptocurrency schemes, IRS impersonation, and fake arrest-warrant calls
- The role of artificial intelligence in making modern scams more convincing and harder to detect
- Financial elder exploitation — how it happens, including misuse of power of attorney and emotional manipulation, and concrete steps to prevent it
- Practical protection strategies — credit freezes, safe payment habits, verifying charities, and knowing when law enforcement would (and wouldn't) contact you
Participants leave with actionable tips they can use immediately to protect their own finances and help safeguard aging parents, grandparents, and other loved ones from becoming victims.
Presenters: Investigators Pedro Munoz and Alaina Kusek of the Cobb County Sheriff's Office, Criminal Investigations Division – Fraud and Forgery Unit