My mother is a smart lady.  She is 86 years old and lives by herself on a farm, gardens and drives herself wherever she wants to go.  She also prays for my brother and me every day as part of her deep Christian faith walk.  She is awesome.
Mom called me the other night to tell me about a phone call she received.  Some woman had called twice, leaving a credible-sounding message about my mom’s supposed IRS deficiency and call-back instructions.  She stated that, if Mom did not call her back and make arrangements to resolve the debt, action would be taken to collect the debt, possibly freeze bank accounts, etc.  Mom told me she believed it was a scam, but wanted to know what I thought.  I told her it was most certainly a scam, since the IRS will never call a taxpayer about a tax matter without first sending a notice by mail.
Authorities advise that recipients of such calls pass the information on to local law enforcement or the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division, and then delete the information.  Never engage in a conversation with such a caller or give personal information.
Authorities are fighting a scourge of phone crime enabled by cheap technology that blasts out nefarious calls and hides wrongdoers’ whereabouts.  The scammers are heavily targeting the elderly, sparking a push in Congress to fight back.  Callers often pose as cash-strapped grandchildren, tax collectors or providers of technical support.
Complaints to the Federal Trade Commission about unwanted calls — including robocalls, or telemarketing sales calls with recorded messages, and spoofed caller identification, such as falsely showing that a bank or government agency is calling — hit a record 1.7 million in the first four months of 2016, up 41 percent from the year-earlier period.  Monthly complaints about automated robocalls have more than tripled since 2009.
Some members of Congress, as well as advocacy groups like Consumers Union, are pressuring phone carriers to do more to block robocalls.  Sens. Susan Collins (R., Maine), and Claire McCaskill, (D., Mo.), leaders of the Senate’s Special Committee on Aging, are among lawmakers making the push.  A California legislator has also filed a bill to force phone companies to offer this technology.
More: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/phone-scams-reach-record-numbers-as-more-target-the-elderly-2016-05-27
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