DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) -- Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller warned older Iowans Wednesday about a scam involving automated calls promising free medical alert systems to protect people from break-ins or medical emergencies.
Miller's Consumer Protection Division received multiple complaints about automated calls that claim a family member ordered or even paid for a free medical alert system on behalf of the recipients.
The calls tell the recipients to press a button to speak with a customer service representative. The recipients who follow the instructions may be connected to a person seeking personal information.
Consumers in multiple states were asked for personal information such as a bank account number, credit card number or, in some cases, a Social Security number.
"At best, those behind the calls appear to be using highly unethical, high-pressure sales pitches to target older people," Miller said in a statement. "At worst, these calls may be nothing more than outright scams designed to tap into someone's bank or credit card account."
Miller urged caretakers or family members of older Iowans to be aware of the scam and know to hang up the phone.
"They're preying on older Iowans, and I urge anyone who takes a call like this to hang up," the attorney general said.