Scams Are Getting Smarter. Here’s What You Need to Know.

Scams are nothing new—but they’ve gotten significantly more sophisticated, and older adults are the primary targets. In her latest segment on WGNY, BSF&B Partner Megan Conroy breaks down what today’s scams actually look like, why they work, and the elder law tools that protect against them. 

They’ll Pretend to Be Anyone

Scammers impersonate police officers, FBI agents, funeral home directors, banks, and delivery services. With AI and widely available design tools, they can replicate official logos, mimic real websites, and hold phone conversations using cloned voices that feel entirely legitimate.

The goal is always the same: your personal or financial information. Name, address, date of birth, Social Security number, account numbers, policy numbers. Any of it opens a door.

How the Approach Usually Works

Most successful scams begin with a simple touchpoint on a smartphone:

• The Text/Email Hook: A text arrives that looks like it’s from your bank or a delivery carrier (like UPS). There’s an “urgent issue” with an account, or a package that needs a small fee to be released.
• The Spoofed Page: You click the link, and the page that loads looks identical to the real website. The moment information is entered, the scammers have what they need.
• The “Gold Bar” Emergency: The most common — and successful — scam that Megan has seen recently involves callers impersonating law enforcement, like police or FBI. They convince an older adult that their bank accounts are compromised and instruct them to withdraw their savings in cash or gold bars for “safekeeping.” A courier is sent directly to their house to collect it—and the money is gone forever.

Why Seniors Are Targeted

First, older adults are more likely to have accumulated a lifetime of assets. Second, technology changes so rapidly that it creates an automatic disadvantage. When digital tools and communication methods evolve completely every few years, it is incredibly difficult to keep up with how flawless a fake message can look. Scammers are actively exploiting this fast-moving technology gap.

What’s at Stake—And How Elder Law Protects You

Any asset can be targeted. If a scammer gets hold of a life insurance policy number, they can attempt to cash it out, take a loan against the policy, or even change the beneficiary. While New York real estate is harder to steal because deed changes generally require an attorney, scammers routinely mine published obituaries to piece together identities and hijack pension or benefit payments.

Protecting yourself or an aging parent involves more than just tech tips. It requires legal safeguards. A comprehensive elder law plan puts protections in place—like a robust Power of Attorney with a trusted family member designated to monitor accounts, or asset protection trusts that keep lifetime savings secure from outside exploitation.

What to Do If Something Feels Off

• Are they asking for info? Legitimate banks and government institutions will not contact you out of the blue to verify personal or financial information.
• Verify independently. Never use the phone number or link in the message. Look up the official contact information and call the public line directly.
• Use trusted resources. The NYS Office for the Aging offers scam-identification resources and training. Your local police non-emergency line can also help evaluate suspicious communications.

🎧 LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW

Tune in to hear Megan’s full conversation on how scammers use text messages, fake websites, and AI-cloned voices to appear legitimate — and what New York families can do about it.

Financial fraud is one of the fastest-growing forms of elder abuse. A proactive plan with a trusted legal team is your strongest defense. Schedule a consultation with Blustein, Shapiro, Frank & Barone, LLP to put the right protections in place — including Power of Attorney structures and asset protection trusts designed to safeguard what you’ve built.