WSET.com - ABC13Police Warn About Elderly Scam in Area

Reporter: Sally Delta

Lynchburg, VA - There is another scam that targets the elderly that involves people walking right inside an elderly person's home looking for social security numbers to try and steal their identity.

One victim's daughter talked about the scam Friday but asked that we hide her identity out of her fear that they may come back.

It was a day like any other. The daughter says she came home after work to check on her 92-year-old mother who stays home alone.

"I said, ‘What you been doing ma?' She said, ‘Oh I've had company.' I said, ‘Who?' She said, ‘Social services, they sent someone over here to check on me,'" said the daughter.

She told her daughter that the 40-some aged woman looked nice and professional. She claimed she was with Social Services and put something on her finger claiming they were testing her oxygen levels. Then she asked her where she kept the oxygen tank and started looking through the house.

"She went to the bedroom and couldn't find the oxygen and then went into her bedroom looking for oxygen," said the daughter.

Detective Rob Miller with the Lynchburg Police Department says he's seen this before,

They're working their way in on the pretense that they are going to help the elderly, and once they get inside, they become demanding for their personal information," he said.

What they're doing with the information isn't clear yet, but stealing identity and benefits is a possibility.

"After working their whole lives, working towards retirement, all of a sudden are they going to find out they their identity has been stolen and they have nothing left in their account?" said Miller.

The daughter says her mother's purse and social security card were well hidden. But LPD wants to remind everyone not to answer the door unless you have a scheduled appointment with someone, and if someone suspicious comes knocking, call 911 right away.