As telecommunication fraud continues to grow exponentially, with reported losses in 2021 of $383 million in Canada¹ and $30 billion in the United States², it's never been more important to stay informed. There are several different types of spam calling and texting scams that have contributed to these losses. One that has already seen 13,293 reported cases, 7,322 victims, and over $118 million of losses for Ontario residents in 2022 alone, is known as the "Grandparent Scam"³.

The Grandparent Scam refers to scammers who call senior citizens, pretending to be their grandchild in an emergency crisis. The details of said emergency may vary, but all of them share one thing in common: The "grandchild" needs money from their grandparent immediately to help solve their problem.

Examples of "Emergencies" Used in Grandparent Scam

• Car accident
• Legal peril including being arrested for drugs or impaired driving
• Trouble returning home from a foreign country
• Robbery
• Health problems

How They Pull It Off

In some cases, the scammer will have done some research into their victim's social media account to know enough basic information about their family to make the call seem plausible⁴. Furthermore, in order to prevent the senior citizen from checking in with the grandchild's parents, the scammer will often make the grandparent promise not to tell their parents. This allows for the financial damage to be done before the grandparent later discovers the fictitious nature of the call.

Similarly, in order to prevent the senior citizen from realizing it's not actually their grandchild on the phone, the scammer will often cry and talk only briefly before a fraudulent "police officer", "lawyer", or "government official" takes over the call and intimidates the grandparent into paying an urgent fee that will help rectify the situation.

How Money is Exchanged

There are a number of ways the scammer could receive money from the victim, most of which are difficult or impossible to trace. Sometimes the grandparent may be asked to pay via wire transfer, gift card, or prepaid credit card. Other times, they may be asked to mail in cash. There have even been reports of fraudulent police officers or court officials later visiting the victim at their home to collect the cash in person⁵.

Important to note is that these scams may also be known as "Emergency Scams", since scammers will sometimes target members of the family other than just grandparents. Aunts, uncles, husbands, wives, or even friends are all fair game. However, it is understood that grandparents and senior citizens are particularly vulnerable to these specific schemes.

Tips to Protect Yourself Against the Grandparent Scam

• Use Whois by SIPSTACK to check information of the phone number calling you.
• If you receive a call like this from an alleged family member, hang up and call that family member directly. This will help you to verify whether or not they are actually in trouble.
• If the caller claims to be a police officer, hang up and call your local police to verify.
• Set the privacy settings on all your social media accounts so that only people you know can view their contents. This will help to ensure no scammers have access to any of your posts, photos, connections, or other private information that can be used in these scams.
• Do not send money over the phone until the callers' identity has been confirmed and verified. Be particularly wary of sending cash, prepaid credit cards, gift cards, or other unconventional cards that are difficult to trace.
• Be mindful of other scams that may be used in tandem with the Grandparent Scam, including caller ID spoofing, and continue to stay informed on how to protect yourself.

How SIPSTACK Fights Fraud

Using the latest technology and machine learning, SIPSTACK's systems authenticates all activity in real time against variables that affect your security. When a carrier implements SIPSTACK's Risk Rating Score, they are able to customize a threshold for calls to pass through, based on their specific needs. At SIPSTACK we take an active role in ensuring we are building a secure and connected tomorrow. Contact us today to learn how you can protect yourself from spam.

References

^{1 https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm
2https://firstorion.com/2021-scam-call-trends/
3https://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/local-almaguin/news/2022/10/06/video-118m-lost-to-ontario-victims-of-grandparent-scams-in-first-8-months-of-2022.html
4https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2019/grandparent.html
5https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/mobile/sudbury-police-charge-ottawa-woman-in-grandparent-scheme-1}