April 9, 2013
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Francine A. Giani, Executive Director of the Utah Department of Commerce, announced today that the Utah Division of Consumer Protection is warning the public that “grandparent scams” where callers try to trick a senior citizen into believing that their loved one is in trouble in a foreign country and needs money to be sent to them immediately via Western Union is still targeting Utah families. The Division is alerting the public that this type of scheme can happen to anyone in our community at any time day or night as Francine Giani’s own parents were the target in a recent phone call. Giani hopes by sharing her family’s personal story, citizens will be reminded that scams
can truly happen to anyone…even if your daughter spends her career educating the public about avoiding scams for a living.
“I applaud my father for not taking the bait and calling me first about this call before heading out to send money to what he thought was his grandson, “ said Francine A. Giani, “ At Commerce, we say these messages often and I know sometimes it sounds like the same old story. I hope my family’s experience will prompt families to share this around
the dinner table and remind grandparents to call their families first before acting with their check book.”
Consumers are urged to hang up on such callers, contact their families to verify the information and report any suspicious calls to their local police department as well as the Utah Division of Consumer Protection.
For more information or to file a consumer complaint contact the Utah Division of Consumer Protection at (801) 530-6601 or log on to; dcp.utah.gov