Seniors warned of 'grandchild' scam

Anne Titus Hilby of the Arizona Attorney General's Office issued this consumer advisory.

Attorney General Terry Goddard warned seniors to be cautious if they receive telephone calls from someone who claims to be their grandchild and requests money for an urgent situation. The Attorney General's Office has received information that the "grandparent scam" has made it to Arizona.

In this scam, the fraud artist calls an elderly person and poses as their grandchild. The caller may say something like, "Grandma, I am so glad I reached you," or "Grandpa, it's me, your favorite grandchild calling." The caller waits for the grandparent to say something like, "Jimmy, is that you?" The caller will agree, and state that he or she has either been in a bad accident or is in trouble and needs money immediately. The caller then asks that the money be sent via money order or through a wire service such as MoneyGram or Western Union.

Here are some tips to remember to avoid falling for this type of scam:

• Verify your family member's whereabouts by calling a family member or the grandchild directly with the number you are familiar with. Do not call the caller with the phone number that person provided.

• Don't "fill in the blanks" for the caller. If the caller says, "This is your favorite grandson," ask "Which one?"

• Never give out personal identifying information such as bank account or credit card account numbers to anyone you do not know, and never send money to an unknown account or entity.

If you believe you have been a victim of this or other scams, contact the Attorney General's Office in Phoenix at 602-542-5763. To file a complaint in person, the Attorney General's Office has satellite offices throughout the state with volunteers available to help. Locations and hours of operation are posted on the attorney general's Web site at www.azag.gov.

Consumers also may file complaints at the above Web site.