Why are people so stupid to fall for this. Don't they listen to anything?

I work in the financial business and it never ceases to amaze me that people do still fall for this type of stuff after all the publicity it has gotten. Scams such as these and others have been on the TV news and in the papers over and over again.

As for the elderly, it can happen so easily. They often get confused and just don't understand that a lot of bad people are out there. The lady that it just happened to may not have any family to watch over her. As for her bank, these wires should have sent red flags flying all over the place. We are trained (or should be) to look for situations like this that just don't "smell" right. While we can't prevent every bad thing from happening, someone could have spoken to this lady and explained to her that Publisher's Clearing House just doesn't work that way. They could have even gone on line to try to get a phone number or some contact point for PCH to speak to the lady.

We have had people bring in their "lottery winning" checks already. Most times, once we show them a website or something proving it's not legit, they give the check up. But even then, it's often hard to convince them. Did they even enter a lottery?? No, but that doesn't stop them from thinking they won! We always refuse to accept these checks.

The only way to ever stop these scams is for people to stop falling for them. And that will probably never happen.

Anyone who has elderly parents or family members that are of simple minds should be on point.

Check the caller ID's etc.

And don't be afraid to contact the police!!
Scammers prey on the sick and the old!

Sadly, these people prey on all of the following: the old, the sick, people with telephones, people with computers, people who do online banking, people who have bills paid directly from their checking accounts, people who run fund-raising organization and believe you can give somebody a dollar and they'll give you back 2 dollars [remember Foundation for New Era Philanthropy], people who believe in a "free lunch," people who believe that someday they're going to hit it big!
Did I leave any of us out?
I have received many of these scams, like the "phishing" emails from nearly every bank in the country. "We're updating our computer system, so please get me your account number so we may continue to give you uninterrupted service!' Now with every bank merging, selling, consolidating itself nearly every month, what do you expect. "No, that was our old routing number!" Some of them don't even know employees in one of their subsidiaries have been robbing them blind!
It's amazing how many of my relatives recently died over there in Britain, or was it in Nigeria, leaving me their huge estates. I guess I'll send them a little "good faith" money just so they know I'm a good person before they mail me that check!