BOSTON, Massachusetts (NEWS CENTER) - Maine Attorney General Janet Mills is joining the A-A-R-P and other Attorneys General from New England to fight phone and Internet scams.
"You can lose your life savings by falling prey to this scam," said Mills.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, 814 people across the state of Maine were victims of phone and Internet scams last year. Nationwide there were 1.5 million fraud complaints. Consumers reported paying $1.7 Billion dollars to scammers. Many unsuspecting victims are elderly and senior citizens.
That is why the AARP and Attorneys General from New England gathered in Boston today to fight back.
Mills said her office has received hundreds of calls in the past several months about the IRS scam. She said many people are losing their life savings. People believe the IRS is calling them demanding payment using prepaid debit cards and wire transfers.
"They pretend to be the IRS they're not the IRS. The IRS does not call your home they do not email you asking for information or money," she explained.
Attorney General Mills and AARP President for Maine Rich Livingston are fighting back through education...
"Education is the best form of prevention. The more information people know the more, the more resistant they can become and as the attorney general says often when in doubt just hang up, do not engage with these people," said Livingston.
Mills, Livingston, and an army of volunteers for AARP's Fraud Watch Network were in Boston Thursday making calls to AARP Members across New England, to warn them and educate them.
"Advising people that these scams are in progress and here's what you do if you are contacted by one of these scammers."
If you'd like to learn how to protect yourself, you can find great information on these websites; http://wwwAARP.org/fraudwatchnetwork, http://www.FTC.gov or http://wwwMaine.gov/AG
And to report fraud you can call the Maine Attorney Generals Office Hotline at 1-800-436-2131
