U.S. Department
of Justice
Elder Justice
About the Elder Justice Initiative
The mission of the Justice Department's Elder Justice Initiative is to support and coordinate the Department’s enforcement and programmatic efforts to combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud and scams that target our nation’s older adults.
We engage in this work by focusing on the following mission areas:
- Building Federal, State, and Local Capacity to Fight Elder Abuse.
- Promoting Justice for Older Americans.
- Supporting Research to Improve Elder Abuse Policy and Practice.
- Helping Older Victims and Their Families
Learn more about the Justice Department's Elder Justice Initiative: https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice
There are sadly as many scams as there are scammers trying to take your hard earned money. Most scams have common warning signs, including pressuring you to make a decision quickly and discouraging you from calling anyone else.
Prevent identity theft by placing a FREE credit freeze on your credit report with each of the three major credit reporting agencies. This can stop creditors from approving new, fraudulent credit accounts in your name.
The criminals who carry out romance scams seem genuine, caring & believable - they are experts at what they do. They will establish a relationship as quickly as possible & gain your trust. Eventually, they will ask for money.
You receive a phone call, “Hi Grandma/Grandpa! I'm so glad you answered - I'm in trouble!" They may even put an accomplice on the phone to act the part of the police. This scam depends upon your compassion for your grandchildren outweighing any concern about potential scams.
These scams are an evolution of more general tech support scams, layering imposter tech support, financial institution, and government personas to enhance the trust. Victims often suffer the loss of entire banking, savings, retirement, or investment accounts under the guise of "protecting" their assets. (2-page flyer)
Do not provide a Medicare card/number or Social Security card/number to anyone except your doctor, pharmacy or known people who work with Medicare to assist beneficiaries. Never provide it to unsolicited callers, no matter who they claim to be or what the caller ID says. (2-page flyer)
The Maine Rx Elder Fraud Program launched in 2024 and utilizes the inherent relationships of pharmacists and their customers to reach older Mainers.
The program is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine, AARP Maine, and the Maine Council for Elder Abuse Prevention.
To learn more about this program, contact Andrew McCormack, Assistant U.S. Attorney & Elder Justice Coordinator
andrew.mccormack@usdoj.gov