Ian MacDonald from A.L. Mattatall’s spoke to us on the subject of the ABC’s of Fraud.
Ian explained to us why we write obituaries and the why they should be written to protect us from fraud.
The purpose of an obituary is to announce that there has been a death and give those who knew the deceased an opportunity to offer support to their friend or loved one.
Obituaries are a great source of information and are often used in genealogy research. Ian encouraged each of us to write our own obituaries as it gives you a great opportunity to review your life and what you have accomplished in your lifetime.
Ian cautioned us that the bad guys of the world often use the information gathered from obituaries to commit fraud. The typical obituary contains most of the vital information necessary to commit fraud. This includes mother’s maiden name often times the exact address of the deceased and birth dates. This information is often enough to give the bad guys enough to do a more expanded search of credit information and for example get credit cards in the name of the deceased.
Ian tells us that we shout write death notices defensively and not give anymore information than is necessary to report the death. For example do not give the exact address of the deceased. Thieves will us this information to break into the home and steal valuables because the obituary will list the timings for memorial services and visitations they now know when the home is likely to be vacant.
Ian gave us a handout that listed the things that must be done after a death. Some of these included cancelling the social security number, and notify credit bureaus of the passing. Ian noted that the executor is responsible for doing these and several other things as listed in the handout.
For more information or to have Ian speak to groups about the ABC’s of fraud contact Ian.