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PODCAST

The Perfect Scam

AARP"s weekly podcast The Perfect ScamSM tells the stories of people who find themselves the target of a scam. Host Bob Sullivan introduces listeners to those who have experienced scams firsthand, as well as professional con artists and leading experts who pull back the curtain on how scammers operate.

true crime

All Episodes

31:46

Mother Goes Missing in Gift Card Scam

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/04/30

When Judy gets a call from a man claiming to be a police officer who says a car registered to her was found full of drugs, she’s skeptical. Before Judy can hang up, though, the man discloses the Social Security number used to purchase the vehicle—her full Social Security number. Shocked, and convinced he’s telling the truth, Judy follows the man’s detailed instructions. She leaves her house immediately, speaks to no one, and obeys his command to stay on the phone. With hours passing, $15,000 missing

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01:06:04

Archive Episode: Grandmother Entangled in Money Mule...

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/04/23

In this 2020 archive episode, Annie believes she's found the perfect online friend, but in reality, she’s being lured into an elaborate romance scam.

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36:50

Undercover Hacker

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/04/16

In the UK an IT professional who goes by the alias Jim Browning is battling cyber scams. Fed up with robocalls disrupting his day, Jim decides to fight back. As con artists try to scam him, Jim uses his professional training to reverse engineer his way into their computers. With the ability to see everything on these computers, Jim works to thwart their operations and save potential victims.

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48:17

Archive Episode: Robocall King Meets the FCC

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/04/09

In this 2019 episode, curious about the barrage of robocalls he himself receives, journalist Alex Palmer decides to look into how robocalls work and why they’ve become so popular. Alex discovers the case of a set of illegal robocalls that temporarily stalled a Virginia-based paging provider, disrupting the ability of hospitals to get in touch with emergency services personnel. As a result, local doctors, nurses, EMTs and firefighters were at risk of missing critical pages. Due to the resulting

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29:54

Honolulu’s Power Couple Caught: Mortgage Scam, Part 2

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/03/26

In part 2, Gerard Puana stands accused of stealing the mailbox of his niece, the deputy city prosecutor, Katherine Kealoha. Surprisingly, this strange crime will lay bare that Katherine’s luxurious lifestyle is fueled by a reverse mortgage on her grandmother’s home, and that her husband, Louis, is using his power as police chief to cover up the crime.

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32:57

Honolulu’s Power Couple Caught: Mortgage Scam, Part 1

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/03/19

Katherine and Louis Kealoha report that their mailbox has been stolen, a strange occurrence in the upscale Honolulu neighborhood of Kahala. Even stranger is that Katherine claims that her uncle Gerard Puana is the mailbox thief, an accusation he vehemently denies. When the case goes to court, though, the Kealohas’ secrets are exposed, revealing a terrible case of family financial fraud.

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10:55

Autocomplete With Frank Abagnale

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/03/12

In this bonus episode, fraud expert Frank Abagnale joins us to use Google’s autocomplete function to ask some of the internet’s most burning questions, such as How do you spot a scam on Facebook marketplace? What are scammers doing with gift cards? And… Did Frank really escape from a plane?

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30:59

A Cruel Con: Life Insurance Scams

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/03/05

Five days after her husband’s funeral, Janet gets a call. The woman on the line claims to be from the state retirement system calling about a $50,000 life insurance policy belonging to Janet’s husband. But there’s an issue: A few late payments mean that the system can’t pay out the policy unless Janet comes up with $4,450 to pay the overdue balance.

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36:36

Addicted to Love, Pt 2

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/02/26

After being a widow for almost a decade, Debbie tells her kids that she’s interested in looking for love again. She finds a match on a dating site, so when another man she chats with while playing an online game expresses interest in her, she tells him she has a boyfriend. Little does Debbie know, both men are scammers, and it will take her family’s best efforts to pull her out of their web.

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30:43

Addicted to Love, Pt. 1

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/02/19

What do you do when you learn your parent is wrapped up in a scam? Christine’s mother is a giving, caring woman who never raised her voice in anger throughout Christine’s childhood. But when her mother starts online dating, her personality changes. Now she’s up at all hours of the night texting with a man she’s never met. She’s dismissive and easily angers if family members question the relationship. When her mother begins giving this new online boyfriend her hard-earned money, Christine really

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34:04

An Email Could Cost You Your Home: Mortgage Closing...

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/02/12

Every year mortgage closing scams cost homebuyers millions of dollars and, tragically, sometimes even their homes. These scams aren’t new, but with the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s been a rise in this type of fraud. We hear from Paul, who moved back to his hometown to care for his mother but finds that his life savings and his new home are in jeopardy because of a scam. We speak with experts and victims about how these schemes work, who’s operating them, and what to look out for.

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20:35

The Credit Card Con Queen

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/02/05

Credit card con artist Lisa Reid’s methods are sophisticated, creative and callous. After gaining credit card information from the wealthy seniors she targets, Lisa goes on lavish shopping sprees at high-end retailers, leaving her victims with bills of hundreds of thousands of dollars. But when one of her victims teams up with the FBI, this credit card con queen is finally brought to justice.

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31:42

Pet Scams Are Big Business

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/01/29

Danny searches for a new four-legged best friend after his beloved Weimaraner dies of cancer. Alison looks for a second Maine coon to keep her current cat company after a difficult move. Both families find themselves caught in the web of online con artists riding the rising wave of pandemic demand for pets.

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30:09

Changing of the Guard: Guardianship Abuse

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/01/22

Even though they live in different states Larry Davis, 74, regularly speaks to and visits his 85-year-old stepmother, Kise, so he is stunned when her neighbor calls to inform him that someone came and took her away. Determined to help his stepmother, Larry embarks on a long legal battle to bring Kise home.

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30:08

The Heiress of Ireland, Part 2 : Serial Con Artist...

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/01/15

Reality TV producer Johnathan Walton discovers that his neighbor and best friend, Mair Symth, is not who she claims to be. Not only is Mair lying about having a multimillion-dollar inheritance, she’s using these lies to extract money from Johnathan. As her web of lies unravels, Johnathan discovers Mair’s other victims and makes it his mission to stop his former best friend from hurting anyone else.

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23:27

The Heiress of Ireland: Serial Con Artist Poses as...

The Perfect Scam ·

2021/01/08

Reality TV producer Johnathan Walton has worked on shows like American Ninja Warrior and Shark Tank. But for Walton, the most vicious shark he ever encounters comes in the form of a new neighbor, Mair Smyth. Claiming to be Irish royalty, Smyth says she is battling her family for a $25 million inheritance. The two develop a friendship, until Walton discovers his new best friend is an international con artist who’s stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars from multiple people, including him.

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14:09

You’ve Got Mail with Frank Abagnale, Third Edition

The Perfect Scam ·

2020/09/25

In this bonus episode, fraud expert Frank Abagnale is back once again to address your questions on scams. Frank sorts through viewer emails to answer questions about the latest swindles, including an Amazon impostor scam and how to spot PPE (personal protective equipment) fraud.

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30:52

Scammer Targets Friends in Real Estate Ponzi Scheme,...

The Perfect Scam ·

2020/09/11

Over several years the Savastano’s have poured nearly a million dollars into their close friend Monique Brady’s real estate endeavor and are shocked to learn the business is a scam. Monique is not flipping foreclosed houses as she claims to be, she’s actually running a Ponzi scheme. Concerned for their friend of two decades as well as getting their money back the Savastano’s reach out to Monique, but she stops taking their calls. As more details come forward about her scheme the Savastanos learn

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35:01

Scammer Targets Friends in Real Estate Ponzi Scheme,...

The Perfect Scam ·

2020/09/04

Kim and Sal considered Monique Brady family. Their children were close friends, and the families even vacationed together. Despite her booming house-flipping business, everyone who knew Monique described her as generous and down-to-earth. Monique’s success and go-getting personality convinced Sal, who worked in mortgages, to invest in her projects. But when the IRS shows up at Sal’s office asking questions about Monique, everything the they think they know about their good friend begins to

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32:41

Serial Con Artist Impersonates Psychiatrist: Part 2

The Perfect Scam ·

2020/08/28

Kathy discovers that her therapist, Dr. Scott C. Redman, is not what he seems: Not only is he not a psychologist, he’s been practicing for years without any real credentials. Rather than accept that he’s been caught, Redman assumes a new identity and sets up shop at another clinic. This time he poses as a psychiatrist, prescribing medications to his new patients. However, the authorities are on to Redman and are determined to stop this serial con artist.

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303 results

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