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Tax Season Alert
Tax Scams Are Surging — Here's How to Protect Yourself
Every tax season, criminals impersonate the IRS, send fake refund emails, and threaten arrest over unpaid taxes. Last year, government impersonation scams cost older Americans over $724 million. The IRS will never call you demanding immediate payment, threaten arrest, or ask for gift cards. If someone does, it's a scam.
Read the full guide →Protect Yourself Today
Three things you can do right now to make yourself safer
You don't need to be a tech expert. These three steps take less than an afternoon and protect you against the most common fraud tactics.
Freeze your credit
A credit freeze stops anyone from opening new accounts in your name. It's free, takes 15 minutes, and is the single most effective thing you can do to prevent identity theft.
Freeze at all three bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. You can temporarily lift it anytime you need to apply for credit.
Set up a family safe word
Pick a word only your family knows. If anyone calls claiming to be a relative in trouble, ask for the word first. This simple step defeats grandparent scams and AI voice clones.
Choose something memorable but not guessable — not a pet's name or birthday. Share it at your next family dinner. No word, no wire.
Turn on two-factor authentication
Your email is the skeleton key to everything — bank resets, Social Security, medical records. Two-factor authentication means even if someone steals your password, they still can't get in.
Start with your email and your bank. Most have a "Security" or "Login" section in settings. It takes 5 minutes per account.
What To Watch For Right Now
The latest scams making the rounds
Scammers follow the calendar. Tax season, holidays, elections, natural disasters — they exploit whatever is in the news.
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Your residents are targets. A 52-week fraud education program can make your community the safest place to retire.
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$28.3 billion
Lost to elder fraud every year in America.
Only $3.1 billion gets reported. That's a 9x gap between what happens and what anyone hears about. Elderus exists to close that gap — with education, awareness, and tools that treat older Americans with the respect they deserve.
Built on analysis of 22,013 fraud-related articles from 30+ news sources across America.
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