Galvin: Banks, credit unions must address exploitation of senior citizens

BOSTON – The Massachusetts secretary of the commonwealth is urging Bay State banks and credit unions to train employees to recognize signs of senior citizen financial exploitation.
William F. Galvin, secretary of the commonwealth, wrote a letter to 190 Massachusetts banking institutions, writing “Training employees to identity signs of suspicious behavior or unusual banking activity involving senior citizens is one [step] that I encourage your bank to take if you have not already done so.”
Galvin pointed to one specific example of a senior citizen last year who was persuaded to obtain bank checks totaling $60,000 in response to a scam telling her she was collecting sweepstakes money.
“Unfortunately, this story may be all too familiar to you, as senior citizens are often targeted because they are more likely to have a ‘nest egg’ of money from years of saving and investing that scam artists want to steal,” he wrote.
He called for a collaboration between the banking institutions and the Massachusetts Securities Division, which is a section of his office, to help protect Massachusetts customers moving forward.

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