Consumer Protection advocates report that thousands of elderly people in Thailand’s Chiang Mai province have fallen prey to complex call centers in the past few years.
Some victims have lost as much as 22 million baht (US$650,000), and the Chiang Mai City Police have received more than 4,000 complaints about these call center scams in the last two years.
In the Hang Dong district, a 62-year-old grocery store owner recounted how con artists impersonating tax inspectors had taken advantage of her. Scammers demanded overdue taxes and guided victims through internet transactions to verify their income using accurate personal information.
Before she became aware, nearly 150,000 baht had been withdrawn from her account. Another local entrepreneur lost hundreds of thousands of baht in a similar scenario.
Con artists have used a variety of methods to trick people into sending money, one of which is to pose as official-looking government figures. The elderly are particularly vulnerable because they rely on authority figures and are unfamiliar with modern technology.
In response to this alarming trend, the Provincial Consumer Protection Centre of Chiang Mai has begun holding seminars to teach the elderly about typical scams and how to avoid falling victim to them. The center stresses the significance of being on guard, not answering calls from unknown numbers, and never sending money or clicking on links that seem fishy.
Officials have been trying to crack down on these criminal networks, but it’s hard to eradicate the problem due to the difficulties of cross-border activities. Support and awareness from families and communities are crucial for the safety of the elderly.
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Geoff Thomas is an award winning journalist known for his sharp insights and no-nonsense reporting style. Over the years he has worked for Reuters and the Canadian Press covering everything from political scandals to human interest stories. He brings a clear and direct approach to his work.
