Scrolling through a pile of mail the other day, I came across a copy of the AARP Bulletin. For those of you not familiar, it’s an official publication of the American Association of Retired Persons that I’ve been getting in my mailbox since I joined the group when I turned 50 years old.

The perks have far outweighed the cost of the annual dues with their discounts on travel and purchases at some national businesses over the years.

But on this day, I realized just how much it can save me and others down the road.

The October issue featured a spread on fraud and how readers - mostly older folks like me - can guard against being stalked by crooks.

The story offered 10 ways that scammers use to separate people from the cash in their bank accounts.

And on this day, I found that I’d been exposed to five of them in the last month or so.

Let’s take a look at how that happened.

These days, now that it’s getting colder, I find myself spending more time at the computer than usual. I surf for fodder for this column, read newspapers, pay bills, stay in touch with friends and I’ve been known to tune in on a meeting or two of local government.

While doing that, I recently came across an email telling me that my account with a national retailer was locked because of a suspicious purchase. It mentioned something about locking the account unless I responded within 24 hours.

I knew instantly it was headed for the trash bin. I never had an account with the retailer.

Then, on another day while scrolling through my social media accounts, I noticed a request from “Samantha,” a sultry looking blonde. She wrote that she’d been following my posts and finds them interesting and entertaining. She wanted to be my friend so she could learn a little more about me.

My guess was that “Samantha” was actually a cigar-chomping scammer looking for some quick cash or some information pointing in that direction. Request deleted.

A few days later, I was looking at what appeared to be a legitimate genealogy site and a pop-up appeared telling me that my computer was infected with something akin to the stuff that may have crawled out of a Chinese laboratory a few years back.

It demanded money to free my processor from the hijacking and told me that unless I called a toll-free number and provided credit card information, my computer would be in their control forever.

A quick click of the power button and a virus scan when the computer rebooted reassured me I was still calling the shots.

On another day, another pop-up told me I needed to call my internet provider in 10 minutes to claim a valuable prize because my account had been specially selected. So I called on the outside chance there’d be a new car in my driveway. But I called the number I’ve been using for years rather than the one on my computer screen. Needless to say, I still have the four-wheeled rust bucket I’ve been driving for the last 10 years.

That brings me to the final scam attempt.

In the last few months I’ve received three or four mailings that required my “immediate attention.” They had to do with my vehicle warranty, which was about to expire if I didn’t renew it immediately. All it took was a call with my credit card info and I’d be on the road again worry-free of the engine falling out.

Those mailings found their way into the recycled paper bin, though the rust bucket could use a new set of tires.

The other items in the article dealt with gift cards, phone calls and cryptocurrency, whatever that is.

The point of all this, I guess, is that ill-intended folks are looking to find ways to prey on the goodwill and trust of the elderly - and even the not so elderly.

It happens all the time, but more so in this holiday season when that goodwill shows the most.

Lawmakers and enforcers are constantly offering examples of how elderly folks are bilked of tens of thousands of dollars. Regular readers of the police columns in this newspaper are familiar with some of them that occurred locally, so I won’t get into the details.

People can guard against getting scammed - especially in this busy holiday season - by changing computer passwords, hanging up on unfamiliar callers and never, ever responding to anyone requesting money – no matter how bad a sob story might sound.

I know the adage is old and overworked, but these days it couldn’t ring more true.

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

ED SOCHA/TNEDITOR@TNONLINE.COM

Ed Socha is a retired newspaper editor with more than 40 years experience in community journalism. Reach him at tneditor@tnonline.com.

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.