Exploiting Senior Citizens

Exploiting Senior Citizens

We’ve been doing computer repair work since 2011. In the past 13 years, we have worked on thousands of computers and we’ve seen just about everything. All too frequently we’ve seen computer repair services taking advantage of senior citizens.

Far too often we have learned of people paying hundreds of dollars for unnecessary computer work that didn’t repair anything. Far too many times we have helped people who were frightened by some computer repair crook who told them that their computer was corrupted, infected with viruses, or “hacked”. We see now, more than ever, companies that most consider legitimate preying on and scaring folks with the “dark web” threat, knowing full well that most people don’t know much at all about the dark web. Nothing frightens people more than the unknown.

We’ve watched dishonest companies prosper; we’ve seen crooks become wealthy. We’ve seen people scared into spending hundreds or thousands of dollars unnecessarily by one tech support scam or another. When recently read an article that appeared in “The Best Times” (October 1, 2024) entitled “Better Business Bureau: Tech support scams target seniors”,  we were not shocked.

Here’s an excerpt from that article – and it’s so disturbing to us because, in our work, we see these kinds of things all the time…

…Seniors are targeted in tech support scams because they may be less tech savvy and more likely to trust a supposed expert. The FTC found that people over 60 were five times more likely to lose money to a tech support scam than younger people. Tech support scams were the number one crime impacting seniors in 2023 according to the FBI. Nearly 18,000 seniors reported losing almost $600 million.

If you do the math, that’s an average of $33,000 per victim. And remember the FTC headline about the crooks wanting your life savings? A 77-year-old Maryland woman’s computer suddenly froze and a phony pop-up message from Microsoft gave her a number to call. She was told her financial accounts were at risk of being breached and, after being transferred to a supposed security officer at her bank, authorized five wire transfers over 28 days totaling $661,000. Her life savings were gone…

Read the entire article here.

Recently, we did computer repair work for people who were told their computers were corrupted, “hacked” or infected. These folks were offered “repairs” costing hundreds of dollars. Many times the cost of the repair was more than the cost of a new computer – and sometimes much more than a new computer.

We have been on the Web for twenty-seven years and we thought we had seen it all, but it seems to us that things just keep getting worse. And it’s only going to keep getting worse as scammers and criminals learn to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) to create new scams. There are times we spend a great deal of time trying to put things in perspective for people who receive threatening or frightening emails. The best defense against this new wave of selling by fear is the truth, but it’s hard to reach out to everyone.

The truth is that legitimate companies and crooks alike are raking in billions of dollars by scaring people – particularly elderly folks – into buying something they don’t need or paying for computer “repairs” that are not necessary and which may make their computers worse or plant some nefarious software on them. By changing settings and drivers and so on, the computer tech ensures future computer problems and therefore a returning customer.

Older folks, more than any other group, use their computers as their window to the world. More than others, seniors use their computers to keep in touch with their family and friends, to pass the time, to do social networking, to develop or engage in hobbies, and more. Many senior citizens use their computers to learn new things, explore new places, make travel plans, and keep up with the happenings around the world.

Crooks and miscreants pray on senior citizens because they are more trusting and many times less tech-savvy.  Crooks take advantage of this and prey on older people – and take millions of dollars from them because they are more trusting and not always computer savvy.

But it is not only the crooks.  We see more and more legitimate companies using the boogeyman approach to scare people to sell products and services using fear to bolster sales. No doubt many companies have made millions or even billions of dollars using scare tactics to sell unnecessary services or products to senior citizens.

“Your Social Security number was found on the dark web” is a popular subject line in the boogeyman’s arsenal used to sell you something you probably don’t need. When you click the link to find out exactly where your Social Security number appeared and how it’s being used, don’t expect to get the information free – more often than not, it’s going to cost you or you’ll be charged to have someone “remove” your info from the mysterious “Dark Web”. Often these “threats” are either non-existent or trivial.

We work hard and spend a lot of time making sure we stay informed in this ever-changing cyber world. We prioritize keeping up with new technology and new threats so that we can help you. One of the most important ways we help you is by separating the truth from fiction and weeding out facts from the hyperbole.

But we’re just a very small company and our reach is limited. But that won’t stop us from doing all we can to keep our readers –our friends – informed and up-to-date so they can enjoy using their computers without falling prey to fearmongering criminals or even fearmongering legitimate companies. We try hard to help our readers separate the truth from the fiction – and the facts from the hyperbole.

We don’t want any of you to become a victim of a tech support scam or a fear-induced swindle. We don’t want you being frightened into action by an email from a legitimate company that resorts to fear to sell you a product or service you do not need. We don’t want you to be scared into buying a service because someone convinces you that your Social Security number is on the “Dark Web” and that you must take action — or else you’re doomed.

Fear and panic are enemies of common sense. When you know the facts and you know the truth, you’re less likely to panic. And if you don’t panic and you are not scared, you are going to think more clearly and you’re more likely to make the right choices.

We want to help keep you safe. We don’t want you to lose money you cannot afford to lose to swindlers and crooks. We don’t want you to spend as much or more on fake computer repairs as you’d spend on a brand-new computer.

Every week we answer dozens of emails from folks asking for help with their computers. And we don’t charge a penny. Our job is to keep you safe, keep you informed, and if you need computer repairs, offer you more than a fair price.

Sometimes we struggle financially but we never, ever, let that affect the way we run our business or influence what products or services we endorse and/or sell.

Our computer repair keys are $50 for one computer repair.

Our daily newsletter and our weekly newsletter are both free.

If you don’t need any of the products or services we offer, we accept donations. Even the smallest donation helps.

We want you to be safe. We don’t want you to be a victim of a tech support scam, a computer repair service that preys on the elderly, or spend your money on subscriptions to services that promise to keep you safe. Services that many banks offer for free.

We want you to enjoy your computer and have fun. Like most everything else in this world, the Internet can be a very wonderful place or a very terrible place. We want you to have fun and enjoy the internet and your computer without worrying about some nebulous nefarious boogeyman. We don’t want you to be a victim of some tech support crook or online scheme to steal your money. We want to keep you safe by keeping you informed.

Thank you for reading this… and thank you for your friendship and your support.