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Avoid Fraud: Pause. Reflect. Protect.

Focus is on teaching how to spot scams

Elaine S. Povich

AARP Bulletin

Published March 01, 2026

Older couple worriedly look at one of the screen of one of their mobile devices.

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Montgomery County anti-fraud volunteer Bill Peyser looks around the community room at the Good Hope Union United Methodist Church in late December and challenges the audience.

“I bet you’re probably thinking ‘I would probably be able to spot a scam; I’d be able to find the red flag,’” says Peyser, who lives in Bethesda. Lots of heads nod. Some members in the crowd whisper “amen.”

But, Peyser cautions the audience, scammers are so professional sounding these days — even using artificial intelligence to mimic family members’ voices — that it’s hard for even the savviest consumer to spot a scam. Older adults are particularly vulnerable, says Peyser, 66, a retired CPA, because “seniors are more prone to being lonely, and so we’re more willing to talk to people we do not know. And we are polite. But that also means we are not as quick to disengage when the conversation goes in the wrong direction.” He notes that most older adults have saved some money — a rich target for scammers.

The life-altering losses are one reason AARP and other organizations are teaching people how to remain vigilant against criminals. According to the FBI, reported fraud losses among adult Maryland residents age 60 and older increased from $37.8 million in 2021 to $80.1 million in 2024 — about 112 percent.

During his talk at the church, Peyser, a volunteer with the Montgomery County Police Department’s Keeping Seniors Safe program, outlines the many methods criminals use to dig into victims’ savings: financial scams, ID theft, grandparent scams and romance schemes top the list. As he speaks, echoes of “uh-huh” and “that’s right” quietly reverberate throughout the room, almost as if attendees are in church. By the end of the talk, audience members are armed with a few ways to protect themselves:

Don’t answer calls from unknown numbers or random, uninitiated emails and texts.
Don’t click on links.
Don’t give out personal information on calls, texts or emails.
Fight instincts to be too friendly and helpful.

COMMITTED VOLUNTEERS

Peyser is just one of many people in Maryland who volunteer through AARP and other organizations and use their time to meet with older adults.

Jen Holz, AARP Maryland’s senior associate state director for community outreach, says volunteers do about 200 fraud prevention events a year.

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Holz says many people will eventually get a weird text or call, and volunteers explain that the first step is to stop and reflect before taking action. They call it getting out from under the “ether” of panic, compassion or helpfulness.

AARP Maryland volunteer Steve Migdal, 76, a retired attorney who lives in Annapolis, counsels people who have been scammed.

Migdal says he’s been counseling people all his career, and has no problem giving advice. Among his tips for people who have been scammed is to do a credit freeze on their accounts, so that no one can take out credit in their name. To learn how to freeze your credit or lift a freeze on your credit, go to usa.gov/credit-freeze.

“I try to comfort them a little bit and reassure them that they are not the only person in this situation,” he says.

Jane Dean, 72, a retired Food and Drug Administration manager from Silver Spring, told the church group in late December that she had been scammed out of more than $25,000. The criminal told her someone had purchased a computer in her name, and then impersonated her bank and the FTC, telling her she had to withdraw her money and put it in a “safe” government account to prevent it from happening again. A bank teller told her the branch did not have that amount of cash on hand. She realized she had been deceived.

“I am totally committed to getting the message out there,” she says.

Learn more at aarp.org/pause.

AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline 877-908-3360

Elaine S. Povich is a Maryland resident and freelance journalist who has reported for newspapers, including Newsday and the Chicago Tribune, and for various magazines.