Last weekend, The New York Times had a pair of front-page articles--both of which were painful to read--that raised consumer law issues. Sunday's article, "Bilking the Elderly, With a Corporate Assist," described how con artists use lists of elderly consumers obtained from list-sellers to identify elderly consumers who can be swindled. Two quotes:
InfoUSA advertised lists of “Elderly Opportunity Seekers,” 3.3 million older people “looking for ways to make money,” and “Suffering Seniors,” 4.7 million people with cancer or Alzheimer’s disease. “Oldies but Goodies” contained 500,000 gamblers over 55 years old, for 8.5 cents apiece. One list said: “These people are gullible. They want to believe that their luck can change.”
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“Only one kind of customer wants to buy lists of seniors interested in lotteries and sweepstakes: criminals,” said Sgt. Yves Leblanc of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. “If someone advertises a list by saying it contains gullible or elderly people, it’s like putting out a sign saying ‘Thieves welcome here.’ ”
There's a lot more in the article about one of the victims, the role of the list brokering industry and financial institutions, and efforts by government officials to put a stop to the problem. One surprising side note: the article reports that the telemarketing industry has grown despite the creation of the "Do Not Call" list.
The article in Saturday's Times, headlined "Couple Learn the High Price of Easy Credit," reported on how one middle-class family juggles their debt payments.



