A Call for Credit Union Beekeepers!
In the
2024 action-packed film, “The Beekeeper,” we are given a clear demonstration of
the well-known tech-support scam, as Mrs. Parker, played by Phylicia Rashad, becomes
a vulnerable victim, and in doing so, sees her bank accounts drained of her
entire life savings. The film clearly depicts the boundless divide that exists
between older adults who espouse a venerable code of values and principles, versus
an alarming army of organized con artists, immorally focused on targeting
anyone with the sole purpose of illegally acquiring money without regard to the
resulting consequences.
As the plot unfolded, I found myself caught up in a tidal mix of emotions, from feeling the piercing pain of Mrs. Parker when she realized she had lost every penny of her savings, to a heightened sense of elation and relief watching the beekeeper mete out justice upon all the perpetrators of the crime.
Why, you ask, a beekeeper? The explanation came when a team of special forces, brought together to stop the beekeeper’s advance, was briefed on their mission. They were told the beehive has many complex mechanisms and if they become compromised, the hive collapses. Government is no different. To prevent a catastrophic collapse, the government established a highly classified agent, “the beekeeper,” who was given unfettered responsibility to keep the hive safe at all costs.
While the film offers a fictional portrayal of what so many older adults experience as targets of financial scams, it certainly calls attention to the dreadful reality we face, every minute of every day. We are under constant attack by con-artists, diligently targeting the most vulnerable to act out of emotion, to act quickly, to act without clearly thinking, to be robbed of their dignity and finances.
The growing trend of reported losses to financial scams and fraud topped more than $10 billion dollars in 2023 as reported by the Federal Trade Commission, and that sum accounts only for what is being reported. Far too many are overly embarrassed to admit they were fooled to act without thinking, fearing the consequences that might impact their independence and freedom.
A recent article in the New York Times has reported that criminals on the internet are increasingly going after Americans over the age of 60 because they are viewed as having the largest piles of savings. Its author, Tara Siegel Bernard, writes, “Americans spend a lot of energy saving for retirement and worrying about losing money to the gyrations of the stock market. But these days, sophisticated criminals — on dating sites, on social media, in messaging apps or using malicious software — present an ever-growing risk to people and their savings.”
A CALL TO ARMS
After more than 20 years within the credit union system, working at WesCorp in California, CUNA in Wisconsin, and the Cooperative Credit Union Association in Massachusetts; after earning the designation of a credit union development educator and remaining faithful to the responsibility it carries within the movement; and after what felt like conducting a non-stop public relations initiative throughout my career in the system, promoting the “credit union difference,” citing the cooperative values and principles that govern our business practices, I’ve come to believe more than ever in that indescribable spirit that infuses credit union folks to do what is right, helping people manage their finances while also giving back to help communities grow and prosper.
That same spirit continues to motivate me today, to raise my voice and call attention to the responsibility we all share within the credit union system to protect older adults from the persistent efforts of con artists intent on scamming them of their life savings. Older adults are among the most vulnerable, and I believe we owe loyalty to them in return for the loyalty they have shown to us. Failure to do so, I fear, could be detrimental to the wellbeing of our credit union “hive.”
The responsibility we all share to confront the ever-growing trend of financial scams can take many forms but after more than seven years working with older adults across four states in this effort, listening to guidance from AARP, the FTC, SEC, NCUA, CFPB, and others, planning educational forums, and conducting podcast interviews, I’ve come to see the importance of three basic requirements for success, the first being education.
EDUCATION
All data points to education as our most effective defensive weapon in this fight. Today, given the wide spectrum of consumer preferences, any education we offer must be delivered across a variety of platforms, virtually and in-person, over and over again. It’s not enough to host one webinar of scam prevention, boast for having done so, and then put the topic aside until the following year. Human nature dictates that we need to hear a message at least seven times before it sinks in.
Any educational efforts must also customize language and the delivery platform specifically to the audience we wish to address and respond to our call to action. Effective communication with older adults requires speaking their language, citing examples with which they identify, speaking in a non-condescending manner, and using a delivery medium and venue most conducive to their lifestyle.
One of the educational delivery models I’ve found to be most effective features subject-matter experts in an informal and interactive face-to-face discussion with an older adult audience and their family members. The feedback I receive hosting these sessions is overly positive, and efforts by those who heard the message and shared it with others unable to attend, is encouraging beyond belief.
One person speaking formally and didactically to an older adult audience for an hour accompanied by a boring slide deck either on a webinar or in-person is simply a waste of time for all parties.
TRUST
A second requirement uses and relies on the trust older adults have placed on their banking-services provider. Since they already trust their financial organization to hold and safeguard their life savings, I’m of the opinion that credit unions and banks, therefore, hold a unique responsibility to be at the forefront of all efforts designed to educate and protect their older members and clients from financial scams and fraud.
For credit unions especially, this is most true. Credit unions boast about their community engagement, educational programs, and social responsibility initiatives, but really, much more attention needs to be given to the alarming tidal wave of scam attempts currently impacting older members.
Talk to any credit union CEO and he or she will readily admit to hearing more and more of their members recount scam experiences or ways in which the credit union was fortunate enough to stop and prevent a withdrawal that was intended to enrich a con artist. The members’ trust in their credit union is sacred to these CEOs.
Trust is earned. It must be continuously proven, nourished and safeguarded every hour of every day if members are to maintain that trust and the confidence knowing that their credit union is doing all it reasonably can to keep their money safe, and to keep them informed and reminded about the latest scam tactics and what to do in response.
TOOLS AND RESOURCES
Finally, the third requirement calls attention to our expectations, especially when planning and hosting an educational session with older adults. Although I’ve planned dozens of sessions where the agenda identified various types of scams, the recommended response to each, and a list of resources where more can be learned, I’m beginning to see it’s not enough.
Scams are flourishing, constantly evolving and growing more sophisticated, and the billions of dollars lost to scams continues to break the previous year’s record. This dictates a call to arms that not only utilizes education but also includes promotion of and access to many of today’s preventative tools as well. The more we can equip an older adult with the right knowledge and tools, the more successful they will be protecting themselves from these crimes.
Services like those provided by Gentreo, an online software platform enabling users to create power of attorney documents, wills and trusts, helps to create another layer in the protective firewall against scams and fraud. AARP’s “Fraud WatchNetwork” is another valuable resource older adults can rely upon to stay updated on the most recent scams. And just recently, a new financial safety service, Carefull, has entered the marketplace, promising to safeguard a user’s money, credit and identity from scam and fraud attempts.
Let’s do all we can to place tools and resources like these in the hands of older adults and their caregivers, giving them something tangible, intended to further fortify their ability to protect themselves and their life savings.
A CALL FOR BEEKEEPERS
The hive – our communities of venerable older adults – are being attacked. Banks, credit unions, lawmakers, law enforcement, in fact, all of us are today’s beekeepers, holding a critical responsibility to older adults and to the safety and wellbeing of the hive.
Are we up to facing the challenge and answering the call for beekeepers? Are we willing to demonstrate how much we value that trust older adults have placed in us? Time will only tell.
About Author:
WALT LASKOS, CUDE, is a credit union industry veteran
of more than 20 years. He is the CEO/Owner of Laskos Communications, an
independent consultancy specializing in the prevention of financial scams and
fraud targeting older adults. For more information, visit www.LaskosCommunications.com.