Evan Bayh: “today I rise as the author of the Protecting Seniors From Fraud Act, a bipartisan bill to prevent fraud against seniors.…”

“today I rise as the author of the Protecting Seniors From Fraud Act, a bipartisan bill to prevent fraud against seniors. The Protecting Seniors From Fraud Act is extremely important because seniors are disproportionately victims of telemarketing and sweepstakes fraud. Even though Americans over the age of 50 account for approximately 27% of the United States population, they comprise 56% of the "mooch lists" used by fraudulent telemarketers. Unfortunately, fraudulent telemarketers prey upon the trusting nature of seniors and as a result seniors lose approximately $14.8 billion each year. This can be prevented if seniors are educated about their consumer rights and are informed about methods that are available to them to confirm the legitimacy of an investment or product. According to a national survey, 70% of older fraud victims say it is difficult to identify when fraud is happening and 40% of older Americans cannot distinguish between a legitimate and a fraudulent telemarketing sales call. There is a need to educate seniors about the dangers of fraud and how to avoid becoming a victim of fraud.”