| •Someone contacts you from the funeral home or cemetery about a problem with your form of payment.•A long-lost relative of the deceased reaches out to offer sympathy or reminisce.•A “spiritual adviser” offers to connect you with your loved one from the afterworld. |
| What You Should Know•Scammers comb through obituaries, funeral home websites, and online memorials to find names and personal details they can use to target families.•In some cases, criminals use a deceased person’s information to commit identity fraud by illicitly obtaining sensitive personal information to take over existing financial accounts or create new ones.•Other tactics involve posing as a distant relative or old friend of the deceased to build a trust relationship over time that can evolve into a scam aimed at stealing inheritance money. |
| What You Should Do•Consider the public nature of an obituary and online memorials, and limit information that could be used to deceive you.•If the funeral home calls demanding money, hang up and call them back at a number you know to be legitimate.•If a “long-lost” relative or friend reaches out, ask other family members or longtime friends if they know the person.•It is not a legitimate business if it seeks payment by wire transfer, cryptocurrency, gift cards or peer-to-peer apps. |
reprinted from AARP Fraud Watch Network