A Message from Rev. Sharon:
We are approaching that time of year when the activity of scammers increases. Last year, a scam email went out asking for gift cards. It looked like it was signed by me. If the receiver looked at the actual email address, they would discover the email looked nothing like mine. If you receive an unexpected request for gift cards, bit coin or anything else that is out of the ordinary, check DIRECTLY with the person that appears to be making the request. I will never send out a request like this, nor would any of the board members.
Below are two great articles from AARP about how scam entice us to participate and what to watch for.
AARP’s Message to Stay Safe From Scams: Pause. Reflect. Protect.
Keep these simple steps in mind — and share them with family and friends — to fight back against today’s sophisticated fraud criminals
Part of Series: Protect Yourself From Fraud
By
Kathy Stokes,
Updated May 18, 2026
Key takeaways
- Most scams share three triggers: unexpected contact, heightened emotion, and urgency.
- An intentional “active pause” helps restore logic that fraud attempts try to override.
- Ending the communication and taking time to independently verify details can stop many scams before money is lost.
Have you heard of the tech support scam? What about the toll road scam? The grandparent scam? Do you know what the red flags are for each of these scams?
Let’s face it: Keeping up with the latest scams and all the red flags that warn us of each one is exhausting. Scams are constantly evolving, and each comes with its own set of red flags to remember. But there are a few general warning signs that apply to a wide range of scams. There are also key ways to respond when you spot those warning signs.
In 2024, AARP Fraud Watch Network launched a project to develop a near-universal message to help consumers recognize and avoid fraud attempts. With consultant Heart + Mind Strategies, we collaborated with dozens of people worldwide, including educators, fraud specialists, law enforcement, fraud victims, relevant federal agencies and even a linguist to arrive at a singular message that would resonate widely: Pause. Reflect. Protect.
In Search of ‘Stop, Drop and Roll’ for Fraud
If you grew up in the U.S., you may remember learning in grade school what to do if your clothes catch fire: Stop, drop and roll. This campaign, along with improved building codes and increased use of smoke alarms, is credited with reducing fire-related injuries.
The AARP project sought to create a campaign similar to Stop, Drop and Roll as an element of the fraud prevention ecosystem.
But before developing a near-universal, safe response to fraud attempts, we needed to determine the best way to trigger that response. “Stop, drop and roll” has a clear trigger and a mighty strong one: fire. But fraud attempts are a bit more complicated. Ultimately, we arrived at three elements common to most scams: unexpected contact, a surge of emotion and a sense of urgency. Once we teach people that these three elements are triggers, we can teach a safe response to them. We call that response the “active pause.”
The Active Pause
This is no ordinary pause. Rather, it’s an intentional act to step back and reflect on what you might know about the situation with which you are faced. For example: Is your grandson calling you late at night (unexpected contact), saying he’s in jail across the country and needs your help (prompting a surge of emotion from you: I must help him!)? Does he say he needs you to send money immediately (creating a sense of urgency)? These are the three triggers that should elicit an active pause.
In the above scenario, you might consider whether it makes sense that your grandson is calling you and not his parents, and that he’s in jail 2,000 miles away when you just had dinner with him yesterday. This intentional step back lets your brain engage with logic — the exact thing the criminal playbook seeks to bypass — and understand the scam attempt for what it is.
In this scenario, you could use the active pause to end communication and call your grandson directly. You might find that he was at home and asleep. In that case, you’ve protected yourself and your money from a fraud attempt.
We see some form of the active pause in high-pressure fields like aviation, emergency medicine and military operations. Now we can apply it to the high-pressure situation of a fraud attempt.
Taking an active pause when triggered can help us regain control of the situation. It gives us time to reflect on what we may know about the scenario, or to call a friend or verify the contact. The ultimate goal is to protect ourselves by ending the communication.
There are many fraud protection measures worth knowing. But narrowing them down to just three will make them easier to understand and remember, which we hope will stop many scams in their tracks.
Know the triggers, know the safe response: Pause. Reflect. Protect.
As with fire safety, many elements must come together to make us all safer from fraud. We encourage everyone to add Pause, Reflect, Protect to their fraud education messaging. It doesn’t apply to every scam, but it’s a start.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
Kathy Stokes is the senior director of fraud prevention programs at the AARP Fraud Watch Network.
5 Emotional States Criminals Exploit to Perpetrate Fraud
Learn how today's scammers use social engineering to hijack your rational thinking and manipulate you
5-minute read
Part of Series: Protect Yourself From Fraud
By
Christina Ianzito,
Updated September 08, 2026
- Scammers use urgency, authority and secrecy to trigger emotions that can override rational thinking.
- Five common tactics exploit needs for love, money, family protection, safety and purpose.
- Pausing, consulting a trusted person and limiting personal details online can help prevent fraud.
Ian Bednowitz’s job is to protect people from fraud. But a few years ago, he came close to becoming a victim himself. He was in the middle of a busy day at Lifelock, an identity-theft-prevention service, when he received a text from Natalie, the company’s chief financial officer. She was hopping on a call and needed his help, says Bednowitz, the general manager. He responded, despite some initial suspicion.
Then came a red flag: “Natalie” asked him if he’d buy some gift cards for a few of their clients. “We don’t compensate clients with gift cards,” says Bednowitz, who ended the communication. “The scam is simple,” he says. “It works because it borrows authority from someone you already trust and pairs it with urgency so you don’t have time to think.”
That’s precisely what criminals want — to ramp up your emotions, which short-circuits your rational thinking, says Marti DeLiema, an expert in the psychology of fraud at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work. “The whole goal is to get people to process the information really superficially instead of deeply thinking,” she explains.
It’s all about hijacking your amygdala, an almond-shaped structure inside your brain that helps process external stimuli and trigger an emotional response. When the amygdala gets flooded, it can override the part of the brain used for critical thinking (the frontal cortex), which “might otherwise recognize that something isn’t right,” says Christine Kieffer, president of FINRA Investor Education Foundation, a nonprofit that offers tools and information for avoiding fraud. Instead, she adds, “our natural fight-flight-freeze instincts kick in, suspending rational judgment and leading us to act on impulse.”
Criminals trying to rush you will often tell you to keep their interaction with you a secret. There’s a reason: If you involve someone who isn’t agitated, that person will be better able to see the situation objectively and calmly. As DeLiema puts it, “Emotion plus isolation equals manipulative control.”
Here are five emotional states fraud criminals exploit — and why they can be so effective.
1. Craving love and companionship
In romance scams, criminals take advantage of our desire for connection and affection. Another tactic is to fake a commonality to justify their initial contact. “You’re a cancer survivor? So am I. I know what you’re going through.” Or “You’re a Vince Gill fan? Me too!” Then they “love-bomb” their target with effusive sweet nothings before asking for money, and they will withhold affection if the person isn’t cooperating.
Why it works: Lavishing someone with affection, then pulling away, makes the victim want to earn that love back. “They’ll say, ‘If you can’t do this, you don’t really love me,’ ” says DeLiema.
2. Desire for financial security or a big win
The criminal will typically propose a sure-bet investment; they might say they have a friend or an uncle who made big bucks. Once you invest, they’ll create the illusion that you’re profiting through fake online platforms. The scammer makes the payoff feel close — if the victim will just send money first.
Why it works: “They create this fantasy life,” says DeLiema. “To get there, you have to spend money, but they lie and say it’s all going to come back to you threefold.”
3. Concern for family members or pets
With the grandparent scam, you’ll get a call from your supposed grandson, claiming he’s somehow ended up in prison. He needs bail money, and fast. They might sound convincingly like your real grandkid, with the help of AI voice cloning. Another insidious scam involves criminals targeting people who post lost-pet notices online. The scammer will say they have your pet, but it’s injured and needs treatment. They might even send AI-doctored photos of your pet in surgery.
Why it works: Criminals are likely well aware that this is going to spark “an emotion-driven reaction” that works in their favor, notes Kieffer. You also may think, Nobody could be so awful they’d extort money from a panicked pet parent. But scammers are that awful.
4. Fear of legal trouble or financial loss
Some scams are about creating a state of high anxiety: Your bank account has been compromised, and you need to secure your finances immediately. Or you didn’t show up to jury duty, so you have a court date the next day unless you pay a fine.
Why it works: “The criminal is trying to make the target move as quickly as possible and transfer as much money as possible in the shortest amount of time,” says DeLiema. The urgency makes you feel so anxious that you may act before verifying the claim.
5. Need for purpose and excitement
The criminals behind investment scams will often flatter their victims, suggesting that they are so savvy, they’ll know a good deal when they see it, says Amy Nofziger, senior director of fraud victim support for the AARP Fraud Watch Network. “They’ll say things like, ‘We’re only making this available because you’re going to understand it.’ ”
Why it works: Nofziger says retirees who miss the sense of purpose, compliments and high-stakes decisions from their working days are vulnerable targets. “The criminals will come in and give you that purpose.”
Join Our Fight Against Fraud
Here’s what you can do to help protect people 50 and older from scams and fraud:
- Tell lawmakers to stop criminals from using crypto kiosks to steal from us.
- Sign up to become a digital fraud fighter to help raise awareness about the latest scams.
- Read more about how we’re fighting for you every day in Congress and across the country.
- AARP is your fierce defender on the issues that matter to people 50-plus. Become a member or renew your membership today.
How to stay rational when scammers try to rattle you
Take a break. Anytime you receive an out-of-the-blue communication that makes you feel a strong emotion, you need to pause and reset.
Tell someone. When you are contacted by somebody who wants you to keep their communication secret, that’s a sign you should reach out to a person you trust who can offer a reality check.
Don’t overshare online. Criminals will find personal details about you on social media and exploit them to create a bond. Change your social media settings to private. Only people you truly know in real life should have access.
Get advice. You can call the free AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline at 877-908-3360, where trained volunteers can offer advice and support if you have experienced a scam.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
Christina Ianzito covers scams and fraud, and is the books editor for aarp.org and AARP The Magazine.