I'VE BEEN PONDERING

Most of you know I served on a Federal Grand Jury for 18 months. Every other Thursday my fellow citizens and I found our way to a windowless room in the courthouse on 9th and Market in Philadelphia, to hear overviews from Assistant US Attorneys and testimony from witnesses, and to vote on whether or not to indict. Some cases were done in an hour; some took many months. It was a fascinating (if time consuming) look into our justice system.

Our Grand Jury was assigned to Economic Crimes and Fraud. And boy did we hear some doozies! While I'm not allowed to share details of any of the cases we heard, I feel compelled to encourage you to BE AWARE and on the lookout for scams and fraud. The criminals are out there working to scam us every day. They are well-organized, with teams behind them. It is all too easy to be taken unawares, and to fall victim to these crimes.

​Kathy Stokes, Director of Fraud Prevention Programs at AARP, wants everyone to know what she calls the "Fraud Trifecta" -- three features found in most initial contact by the criminals.

When we see these three things, we should be on alert that this could be fraud:

1. Unexpected contact
2. A message that yields high emotion
3. A sense of urgency

Did you ever hear about the grandkid scam? Grandparents get a message out of the blue (unexpected contact), supposedly from a grandson who is in jail in a foreign country (heightened emotion), and needs $10,000 for bail right away (sense of urgency). Americans have lost millions of dollars to this scam alone - and and estimated $10 billion per year to scams overall. Which is why Kathy wants to spread the word about the three red flags of fraud.

​AARP's Fraud Watch Network has a wealth of helpful resources, a great newsletter, and even a podcast that aim to keep us aware and thus less vulnerable. They also have a fraud support program if you or someone you know has been a victim -- call 877-908-3360.

Also, I strongly endorse Kathy Stokes' plea that we need stop blaming the victims of fraud (click link for a video on this). Headlines focus on the victim, while the crime itself and the criminals are invisible. Blaming a relative who was targeted by scammers can tear a family apart.

Let's help change that narrative, talk about it more openly, and keep each other safe!

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TIMELY TOPICS

Are you feeling nervous about investing these days? Have you read some frightening news that makes you think the markets are for sure about to plummet? The thing is, there's always scary news, and there's always someone foretelling a terrible downturn in the markets - but it actually rarely happens!

​This article from Ben Carlson points out one particular doomsayer who's been wrong many more times than he has been right. He shares a bunch of stats to come to this conclusion:

"Most of the time good things happen in the markets but sometimes bad things happen.

The people who predict a crash every single year will be “right” eventually.

But they will be wrong the majority of the time."

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RECENT/UPCOMING SIGHTINGS

• Investopedia interviewed women advisors in their Top 100 on our advice for women investors.
• I got to go back to my beloved alma mater, Duke University, to speak with two different student groups about personal finances and financial planning as a career.
• We've had some juicy episodes on the podcast recently, including going deep on strategies for Solo Aging, the hazards and best practices around Financial Recordkeeping, and the importance of Self-Care to your finances.
• Kevin and I were guests on the most recent episode of Sh!t That Goes On In Our Heads podcast. Hear more about each of our back stories!

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Let's Connect!

Are you a podcast listener? What are your favorites? Please reply to this email and let me know!

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