Scammers have no sympathy for anyone as evidenced by the many scams that are based on obituaries.  For years, scammers would scan the obituaries and then go to Social Security’s Death Master File where the names of deceased Americans are available along with their Social Security numbers and then use this information to the deceased a victim of identity theft by obtaining credit, filing phony income tax returns or other tactics.  Easy access by scammers to the Death Master File has been largely closed by legislation that took a long time to be made effective.

Scammers also will look for information in obituaries about the names of family members and then use that information for purposes of the infamous Grandparent Scam where the grandparent gets a telephone call late at night from a scammer posing as the grandchild who under the guise of some emergency tricks the grandparent into sending money to the scammer.

Scammers also call the families of people they see in the obituaries and claim they are creditors of the deceased person and that the family must pay a debt owed by the deceased.

Finally, scammers will also deliver packages by messengers on a COD basis claiming that the package was something ordered by the deceased person.  It is only after the family member has paid the Cash On Delivery charges and opened the package that the family finds that the package is just filled with old newspapers or magazines merely used as weight for the package.

TIPS

Scammers prey on people at their most vulnerable so it is at times like the death of a family member that you must be your most vigilant.  When writing an obituary, don’t put in specific information such as names that can be used by a scammer.  Also, contact the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, TransUnion and Experian to seal the credit report of the deceased in order to avoid the risk of identity theft.  If someone contacts you claiming a debt was owed by the deceased, demand written confirmation for you to review before paying any alleged debts.  Don’t be pressured to act quickly by a purported debt collector.  Finally, if a COD package comes, refuse to pay until you can confirm that the delivery is legitimate.