Lynette Niebla
BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA) – Scammers are getting stronger, smarter, and far more skillful, leaving local seniors vulnerable to fraud, especially in a rapidly changing world dominated by artificial intelligence (AI).
To combat this rising threat in the Imperial Valley, the Brawley Police Department’s (BPD) Crime Prevention Unit hosted a scam awareness seminar at the Brawley Senior Center.
The event served as a critical guide for seniors, families, and caregivers on how to identify modern digital traps and protect their personal savings.
According to local officials, proximity to the border and easily accessible public information make local elderly residents prime targets for international and domestic fraudsters.
“I think because we live close to the border that they target these elderly people,” said Cassandra Carlos, Crime Prevention Coordinator for BPD. “And it’s like we told them: A lot of their information, their name, their phone numbers, it’s all public information.”
Carlos warns that bad actors routinely scrape public databases and social media profiles to harvest names, addresses, and family connections.
Con artists then weave those real-world facts with advanced AI technology to clone the exact voices, pictures, and videos of loved ones.
“The AI, it’s pretty real,” Carlos stressed. “A lot of what we said to the class was, ‘Hey, call and verify whether it’s the Social Security, IID, or the IRS. Call and verify before you send the funds.'”
The seminar highlighted multiple rising scams currently plaguing the region, including fake text messages regarding overdue out-of-town toll road tickets, fraudulent package deliveries (claiming to be from FedEx or USPS), bank account locking notices, and romance scams.
One of the most emotionally devastating tactics remains the “family emergency scam.” A fraudster calls pretending to be a grandchild or relative, weaponizing a manufactured crisis, such as a severe car accident, an immediate medical emergency, or an impending arrest, to demand secrecy and an urgent cash transfer.
Law enforcement officials noted that scammers always use emotion first, implementing a sense of urgency, trust, and secrecy to prevent victims from thinking clearly.
Major warning signs of a scam include:
Urgent Demands for Immediate Payment: Requests for gift cards, cryptocurrency, wire transfers, or cash shipping.
Threats of Severe Consequence: Threats of immediate arrest, hefty fines, or physical harm to family members if you do not cooperate.
Inquiries for Sensitive Data: Asking directly for passwords, Social Security numbers, or banking details.
Demands for Secrecy: Telling victims to keep the situation a secret and instructing them not to contact family or local police.
A frequent trick involves callers manipulating their caller ID data to read “IRS,” “Social Security,” or “Police Department.” Authorities want residents to know that legitimate government bodies will never operate this way.
“The police department, the sheriff’s office, or even the IRS won’t call you to ask you for your personal information, and it’s important that they know that,” Carlos explained.
Agencies like the IRS or Social Security Administration will always correspond through official postal mail first, and even received letters should be independently verified before acting. If your phone screens an incoming call as “Scam Likely,” the safest action is to not answer.
BPD advises everyone to implement a simple three-step defensive rule when dealing with suspicious communications:
Stop: Do not answer high-pressure demands with immediate payment.
Think: Ask yourself, “Does this situation make logical sense?”
Verify: Hang up immediately. Call the agency or relative back using a trusted, verified telephone number you already know is real.
To easily defeat AI voice-cloning in family emergency scams, authorities recommend families establish a unique, private family code word that only real family members would know.
Additionally, if an individual receives a high-pressure call, they can utilize a safety script: “I do not handle money or personal information over the phone. I will verify this.”
If you have already fallen victim to a scam or mistakenly shared sensitive banking details, time is of the essence to minimize financial damage.
“There are certain websites and numbers you guys can call to report if you already fell for the scam, but the main important thing is that you verify it and don’t send money. Don’t click on any links,” Carlos said.
If a transaction has already occurred, scammers can drain assets with terrifying speed. “They are able to take the funds out immediately,” Carlos warned. “I’ve had people like within minutes of doing the transaction that the gift card was already at zero.”
Emergency Steps for Scam Victims:
Contact Your Bank: Immediately call your financial institution to freeze your accounts, report fraudulent transactions, and lock credit cards.
Alert Local Police: File an official police report with local law enforcement.
Confide in a Trusted Person: Tell a family member or trusted friend what happened so they can support you through the recovery steps.
Moving forward, Brawley authorities urge the entire Imperial Valley community to remember four vital words: Stop. Verify. Report. Share.
Even if you did not lose money, reporting the encounter helps law enforcement track active fraud rings. Suspicious, unsolicited text messages can be reported at any time by forwarding the text message to the wireless safety number 7726 (SPAM). In any immediate emergency situation, always dial 911.
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