Medicare scams reported across state

JACKSON — A Wyoming cybersecurity organization is warning of fraudsters targeting senior citizens in Medicare scams.

CyberWyoming reported in a weekly press release that an elderly resident in central Wyoming “unintentionally shared her Social Security number and/or Medicare number over the phone.”

The incident occurred late on a Friday afternoon, at a time when banks were closed. 

Medicare residents should log into their secure Medicare account or call 1-800-MEDICARE to report potential fraud.

The nonprofit also recommended that individuals immediately freeze their credit at all major bureaus to protect against identity theft, report the incident to their bank to secure financial accounts and look up the nearest Social Security Administration office to seek advice on how to protect themselves.

CyberWyoming noted that this incident was not the only scam targeting those with Medicare benefits.

“There have been several Medicare scams reported throughout the state, including ‘We are replacing your paper card with a plastic one’ and ‘Because you are on Wyoming Medicare we are changing the card colors to brown and gold,’’ CyberWyoming wrote in the Feb. 2 press release. “While these scenarios sound plausible, remember that the real Medicare people won’t ask you for your number over the phone or contact you out of the blue.”

One Jackson retiree responded appropriately when a recent message came in looking like it was from their financial institution, Global Atlantic. The fraudulent email had the subject line “Global Atlantic Annuity Transaction Confirmation.”

“Despite the email appearing legitimate, the client recognized it as a scam and reported it to the annuity carrier,” CyberWyoming wrote. “The email urged the recipient to click a link to access their transaction confirmation in the electronic document library and provided a phone number for inquiries.”

CyberWyoming emphasized the importance of verifying such communications to prevent financial fraud.

“Fraud is happening and it’s happening consistently,” said Tia Stanton, a school resource officer and Teton County sheriff’s deputy. “Especially to our older population.”

Stanton shared how she tries to insulate her own grandmother against fraudsters.

“If she ever doesn’t know who’s calling her and she answers the phone, and they start talking, I just tell her to hang up,” Stanton said. “If it’s important, they’ll call you back.”

If she gets a pop-up message on her phone or iPad, Stanton asks her grandmother to call her and tell Stanton what the message says before doing anything.

“I think it’s really important that especially our older population find someone that they trust and confide in,” Stanton said. “Whether that be family, kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews, a more technology-proficient neighbor, a friend...just to pause and bounce things off of them.

“I think the biggest thing is victims usually say at the end of an investigation, ‘I had a gut feeling that something was wrong, that something was off, that this wasn’t right,’” Stanton said. “I just want to tell people, ‘Trust your gut.’”