skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Reformed Identity Thief Helps Mainers Avoid Being Scam Victims

play audio
Play

Monday, April 24, 2017   

PORTLAND, Maine — He conned bank tellers, doctors, lawyers and a major airline and last week, reformed identity thief Frank Abagnale shared tips with Mainers on how to avoid becoming scam victims.

Abagnale spent 40 years helping the FBI catch scammers, and now consults as an ambassador for AARP's Fraud Watch Network. He said incidents of fraud jumped by 16 percent in 2016 - and Mainers need to be alert whenever they get a pitch by email or phone.

"They don't have a deceptive mind, so when their phone rings and it says on the caller ID that it's the Internal Revenue Service, or the police department, they believe that's true,” Abagnale said. "So, I always tell people you have to do what Ronald Reagan said - that is, to 'trust and verify.'"

Abagnale's conversion from con-man to fraud expert was made famous in the Steven Spielberg movie "Catch Me If You Can." He told a crowd at USM in Portland about the current crop of scams - including people posing as IRS agents - and offered tips to avoid them, .

Although the deadline has just passed for filing federal tax returns, Jane Margesson with AARP Maine said that doesn't mean scammers are taking a time-out. She said they're still busy looking for ways to steal personal identities and income tax refunds.

"There's a reason that the IRS scam is one of the top scams in the country - it's because it's working. And while it balloons during tax season, it's actually a scam that we're seeing all the time, all year round."

Abagnale said the best way anyone can 'trust and verify,' is to be aware of red flags that are almost always part of every scam.

"Anyone who's trying to rush you - 'You have to pay this today, you have to do this immediately, you have to give me an answer right away' - is all the red flags that are telling you that this is probably a scam,” he said.

To help Mainers who want to protect their personal information, AARP is holding free shredding events in Augusta, Bangor and Portland at the end of the month. There's more information about those events and the Fraud Watch Network at AARP.org/ME.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021