These Sisters Knew Their Mom Was Being Scammed. Telling Her Was the Hard Part
You suspect your elderly parents are being targeted by financial scammers. Protecting them could require a master course in behavioral science.
There is a growing realization that combating scams means understanding the psychology behind why people fall for them. JPMorgan Chase, for example, hired a behavioral scientist in 2024 to help employees talk to customers who might be under a scammer’s influence. Bank of America has specialists trained to spot financial exploitation so they can work with at-risk clients.
These criminals have gotten highly sophisticated. Many operate out of massive compounds overseas, cultivating deep emotional or romantic attachments with their victims online. Their playbooks often include getting their victims to distrust the people most likely to intervene.
Sisters Heather and Melissa Brown, 45 and 37, respectively, couldn’t convince their 73-year-old mother that a man she met online was a scammer. They traced the photographs he used to another man’s social-media account and then presented their evidence to their mother.
