People's Daily Lin Lichun Wu Ke
People's vision
Now I often see news that some elderly people have been cheated. Financial fraud, health care products promotion, "housing for the elderly" scam, and even pyramid schemes and illegal fund-raising ... Especially under the new trend of "fast" and "old" such as the rapid development of the Internet and the accelerated aging of the population, scams for the elderly also show the characteristics of endless innovation. Even if the media frequently exposes reminders, even if many elderly people have received higher education, they will still fall into the trap. What are the social and psychological reasons behind this? How do the elderly stay away from the trap? Everyone will get old. How to plug the loopholes and fill the shortcomings from the institutional level, so that the old people can enjoy their old age? I hope our report can promote more people to pay attention to these issues.
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There are all kinds of traps in "cheating the old"
In addition to the consumption of health care products, investment in collectibles, high borrowing and high-interest financial management have also become the hardest hit areas for the elderly to be deceived.
"My mother has been very diligent. I didn't expect to spend so much money on health care products. " Wang Xia, a resident of Hexi District, Tianjin, said helplessly. Her mother Chen, 65, is a retired teacher. "At first, when she went out for a stroll, she often picked up free eggs, sesame oil and towels. I didn't think much. Later, she bought a few boxes of health care products, saying that it can treat high blood pressure and spent her three-month pension-more than 9,000 yuan! "
Wang Xia felt that the money was not worth spending, and advised her mother to go to the hospital to see what was going on, and not to listen to the health care product salesman. Chen retorted, "I think this is useful. Besides, I spent my own pension. Someone bought hundreds of thousands of medicines. Are you distressed that I spent this? "
There are four health centers in the community where Chen lives, all of which are elderly people. When the clerk saw the old people at the door, he called them "grandparents" and let them "take the bait" step by step through health knowledge lectures, free gifts, and exaggerated drug effects.
Zhu Weiwei, vice chairman of chinese institute of food science and technology, said: "In the sales of health care products, individual enterprises exaggerate publicity, and the victims are mainly the elderly." According to the Investigation Report on the Present Situation of Legal Concepts and Rights Protection Consciousness of the Elderly issued by Jinan Anti-fraud Rights Protection Center for the Elderly, 32.6% of the elderly have been cheated, which is the main victim group of fraud, mainly nutrition and health products fraud.
In recent years, there are more and more tricks to deceive the elderly. For example, in the name of investing in apartments for the elderly, high returns and providing old-age services are used as bait to lure the elderly to join the investment; By holding so-called financial management lectures, free medical examinations, free travel, and distributing small gifts, the elderly are lured to invest money.
Yang Nan, a 62-year-old Beijinger, had no experience in collecting, and came across the staff of a collection company. I was cheated to buy a "celebrity calligraphy and painting" and spent 65,438+10,000 yuan. Later, another person who claimed to be an auction company said that she could help her find customers and sell the collection, but she had to pay for transportation, identification and auction. After Yang Nan remitted 50,000 yuan, he couldn't contact again.
A questionnaire survey on the demand for old-age services of 1000 elderly people conducted by Beijing Lvwei Yinling Research and Service Center shows that the consumption of health care products, investment in collectibles, high borrowing and high-interest financial management have become the hardest hit areas for the elderly to be cheated.
The reason why the old man was cheated is very complicated.
There is no financial security, emotional neglect by family members, and there are many loopholes in management.
"I invested 30,000 yuan and hit Shui Piao." Liu Dongqi, a resident of Tianjin, did not refute the financial investment of "e-Rent Bao" a few years ago.
At that time, 70-year-old Dong Liu and his friends went to an office building in Tianjin to attend an investment and financial management class. The high return made him move. "My son has to pay the mortgage every month and send his grandson to school. It's stressful. I want to help him more. " With luck, Dong Liu invested 30,000 yuan. Unexpectedly, half a year later, Dong Liu found that people here were deserted. "Don't say interest, the principal is gone." Dong Liu sighed.
As China enters an aging society, there are more and more scams for the elderly. Even the elderly with higher education, many can't escape the "palm" of the liar. Why are the elderly so easily deceived?
Lack of economic security.
The elderly in their sixties and seventies are the beneficiaries of the continuous growth of residents' income level after the reform and opening up. They have some savings, but generally lack the concept and knowledge of investment and financial management. Especially when I was young, there was no personal pension plan, and my income dropped sharply after retirement. Many people not only can't count on their children, but also may "gnaw at the old", which makes retired people feel great economic pressure, lack of wealth security and easily fall into the trap of swindlers.
-Psychological needs are ignored by family members.
Zhu said that some health care products companies took advantage of the elderly's pursuit of health and longevity or their reluctance to go to the hospital because of illness, lobbied through salespeople and even hired childcare to cheat. Family members often ignore the psychological state of the elderly. "I am too busy at work, and I have to accompany my children to interest classes in my spare time. We really don't have much time to communicate with our parents. " Wang Xia said.
When people get old, their physical strength and energy are declining, and they need the care of their families. "The elderly's desire for care and belonging gives scammers an opportunity." Cai Liuyang, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Tsinghua University, said, "Liars will not sell health care products to the elderly at first, but their marketing process will gradually defraud the trust according to the special needs of the elderly." The study found that young people usually decide whether to invest according to each other's behavior, but older people are more inclined to trust faces that look "reliable" when making decisions.
-The formal market for aged care services is underdeveloped.
Chen doesn't like square dancing after retirement, and there is nowhere to go. Wang Xia said: "I occasionally go shopping with her, and she always says that they are all things that young people like, and there are too few products suitable for the elderly." At present, there are many formal financial institutions, nutrition institutions and medical institutions. Ignoring the needs of the elderly and rarely giving lectures on expertise at the grassroots level, many scammers have occupied this market.
Cai Liuyang believes that the elderly generally have a high degree of recognition of traditional media. Although some fake "experts" and "professors" appearing on TV or newspapers have been exposed repeatedly, many elderly people are still kept in the dark. "We should popularize scientific knowledge as much as possible so that the elderly can receive correct information."
-Lack of supervision by relevant departments.
"What's the use of a liar if the money doesn't come back?" Dong Liu regretted it. "Relevant law enforcement agencies have regulatory loopholes and law enforcement blind spots when dealing with elderly fraud cases." Liu Junhai, vice president of china law society Consumer Protection Law Research Association, said that many cases could not be handled in time, and it was impossible to give an explanation to the elderly and hurt them again.
It is understood that the regulatory authorities' crackdown on illegal propaganda of health care products mainly depends on whether there are illegal acts such as suspected false propaganda, selling fake and shoddy goods, and operating without a license. However, many businesses have formal procedures, and salespeople often secretly exaggerate the curative effect to the elderly, making it difficult to obtain evidence. In this regard, the legal profession suggests that health food is often marketed in the form of meetings. According to the Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) on Urban Real Estate Management, hotels, halls and other places are prohibited from renting rooms for illegal business activities. Real-time registration platform for housing rental information will be jointly established by industry and commerce, public security and other departments. To ensure that the above places will not provide places for conference marketing activities such as false propaganda and fraudulent sales of health food, and cut off the sales chain of false propaganda from hardware.
Don't let the scam continue to harm people.
The old man is sad, the old man is injured, and "cheating the old man" has become a new profession.
"My dad always says that money is wasted, and sometimes he talks to himself. I am really worried that he will be depressed. " Dong Liu's son Liu Jianmin is very worried.
"My mother only eats health care products and doesn't control her blood pressure, which leads to blurred vision. It cost a lot of money to go to the hospital. " Wang Xia said.
"After the elderly are deceived, their self-esteem will also be hurt and their trust in others will be significantly reduced. If the family members do not handle it properly, it will cause great mental stress to the elderly. Severe cases may be accompanied by psychological problems such as depression and anxiety, and fall into a negative state. " Cai Liuyang said.
Deception against the elderly often does great harm to the deceived elderly and their families. Some elderly people have been cheated of their savings for many years, and their family life is in trouble and family relations are tense; Some people feel unwell because of improper use of health care products, and even have both money and people.
What is more serious is the harm to society. Because the illegal cost is far less than the illegal income, cheating the elderly has become a new "occupation". Some young people are willing to be the "grandchildren" of strange old people to cheat money to make a living without seeking proper career development. "High income makes criminals rampant, pollutes the social atmosphere, and encourages the bad atmosphere of getting something for nothing and forgetting righteousness. The social impact is extremely bad." Liu Junhai said bluntly.
Cai Liuyang suggested that if the middle-aged and elderly people at home are cheated, their families should not blame them blindly, but should give them enough care, spend more time with them, understand their psychological needs and communicate more. Popularize knowledge for the elderly in daily life and give appropriate reminders. In addition, children should not blame the elderly, but should complain to consumers' associations to protect their rights or report to the public security organs.
"The elderly generally lack self-protection awareness and are superstitious about wealth management products and health care products. In fact, where will the pie in the sky fall? " Liu Junhai reminded the deceived elderly and their relatives to pay attention to the preservation of evidence, such as agreements and letters of guarantee.
"Relevant regulatory law enforcement departments, such as industry and commerce, food and drug supervision, public security, etc. It is necessary to form a joint supervision force, eliminate the blind spot of supervision, form a supervision network, and establish a mechanism to seamlessly prevent and combat fraud among the elderly. " Liu Junhai said that consumer associations should also do a good job in consumer education and issue consumer warnings on time; Investor protection companies and CSI service centers for small and medium investors should strengthen risk education for the elderly and achieve collaborative governance.
In addition, community, children of the elderly and other grassroots organizations should also start from all aspects to help the elderly understand new information, identify scams, be vigilant, and "tie the fence and watch the purse" for the elderly.