Consumer watchdog Mary Bach had a strong message for senior citizens in how to avoid becoming a victim.

“There are entirely too many bad guys that are trying to get their hands into our wallets and our bank accounts,” said Bach, who is chairman of AARP Consumer Issues Task Force.

Bach, who is active in AARP's Fraud Watch Network, spoke to senior citizens this week at the Butler YMCA about electronic and mail scams and how to avoid them.

Bach told senior citizens to be wary of scammers who will invite them to nice local restaurants for meals. While at the meal, Bach said, these scammers will make their pitch to come to senior citizens' homes to talk about a retirement plan.

She spoke of a situation where she and her husband were “undercover sleuths” to see what kind of scams people tried to pull.

One man told her, “You write me a check for $100,000, we'll work out the details later.”

However, he had no details or paperwork showing he would put her money to good use.

“We showed him our door very quickly,” Bach said.

Another scam to be aware of, Bach said, is people presenting annuity plans. She said that annuities are being sold as a long-term investment product, but that not all annuities are right for everyone.

“The suitability factor is a really big one,” Bach said. “My husband and I have been pitched annuities where I'd have to live to be 119 years old before I reaped any benefits.”

When it comes to phone calls, Bach urges people to be careful even when caller identification shows a familiar number because of “spoofing software.”

“You cannot trust caller ID,” she said. “Bad guys can make caller ID look familiar.”

She told a story in which the caller ID showed it was her own phone number calling her.

“Guaranteed prizes” can be another scam to which people fall victim. Bach said that people will contact someone and tell them that if they send in money, they will be guaranteed a car, another desirable product or, in their case, the third prize.

Often, Bach said, the third prize is small and insignificant. She shared a story in which someone fell victim to this scam and sent someone $89 for a small desktop storage container.

“You never know what they're going to be offering,” Bach said.

She also cautioned against letters claiming people have won foreign lotteries. These letters ask for personal information, including banking and routing numbers.

Bach said it is illegal for a person to win a foreign lottery.

Other tips Bach provided were to use online passwords that combine letters and numbers, and to avoid using obvious or sensitive information.

She also cautioned to shred documents containing sensitive and personal information before putting it in the trash, pick up mail promptly, and don't give out your information on the phone unless you initiated the call.

Larry and Marilyn Boyer of Butler Township attended the meeting and found the tips valuable.

“You need to be cautious, careful and intelligent,” Marilyn Boyer said.

She also said she never answers the phone if she doesn't recognize the number.

Butler police Detective Nathan Shulik also spoke at the session. He said the Butler Police Department has dealt with several of the examples of fraud of which Bach spoke.

One of the primary examples in the past year, Shulik said, was scammers claiming to be the IRS. They contacted people and told them they owed taxes and had a warrant for their arrest if they did not send money.

“We have a lot of senior citizens in the community,” Shulik said. “They're targeted more often than not.”

Shulik advised people what to do if they are contacted and suspect fraud.

“For scams that they're unsure of, contact the police immediately,” he said.