There are numerous things that come with the yearly holiday season. One of them, regrettably, is a noticeable increase in scams.
The Harris County Attorney’s Office encourages citizens to be on the lookout for these fraud attempts and scams in order to combat this yearly encroachment.
The Federal Trade Commission reports that last year, customers nationwide lost over $10 billion due to fraud, a 14% increase over 2022. Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee stressed the significance of increased vigilance throughout transactions, particularly over the next months, at a recent press conference.
Menefee stated, “We want you to be vigilant and to safeguard your personal information.” She also offered specific advice on how to prevent becoming a victim of possible scams:
- Stop and think before entering personal information
- Use multi-factor authentication
- Keep technology updated with the latest software
- Monitor financial accounts and report suspicious or unusual activity.
The problem is that these frauds can take many different shapes and frequently target elderly people.
Fortunately, the money was not taken by the scammer in that instance. But many other seniors were not as lucky, as evidenced by the $538 million older individuals reported losing in 2022. Holiday scams also have a significant negative impact on the nation’s finances. Cybercrime could cost people of all ages more than $12.5 billion over the course of the holidays in 2023. Menefee is encouraging citizens to contact his office via text at 346-354-7459, email at [email protected], or online to report suspicious frauds.
