The Perfect Scam

A letter arrives in the mail from a woman claiming to have psychic abilities. She warns you of danger but promises good fortune — if you send her money. This is the setup for one of the longest-runnin...

10 Aug 201825min

Valerie, a 90-year-old retiree, believes she's won the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes. She's handed over tens of thousands of dollars to scammers in order to collect a prize that doesn't exist....

3 Aug 201824min

Valerie, a social and energetic retiree, can't believe her luck when she receives a letter stating that she's won the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes. When Valerie shares the news with her adult...

27 Jul 201827min

We'll be back with new episodes of The Perfect Scam on July 27. In the meantime, enjoy this bonus episode featuring the producers of the podcast showing off their fraud-busting skills in a pop quiz. A...

29 Jun 201813min

In this episode of The Perfect Scam, Frank discusses his favorite scams. Then Will speaks with AARP Fraud Watch Network experts Kristin Keckeisen and Amy Nofziger to learn more about being on the fron...

22 Jun 201825min

In this episode of The Perfect Scam, we pull back the curtain on call centers and learn about the rise and fall of one call center employee who scammed victims daily. We've talked a lot about scams bu...

15 Jun 201831min

When Elaine makes a connection with a man on a dating site, she believes this could be something really special. Over time, the online relationship turns romantic. So when Elaine's new boyfriend claim...

8 Jun 201829min

Ann was the victim of something called a re-scam. The scammer claimed to be from her credit card company and was calling to notify Ann of fraudulent charges on her account. Ann is normally wary of giv...

1 Jun 201831min