Our speaker, Ryan Aderman is a Community Outreach Liaison with the Attorney General's office. He is one of nine in this department. He joined the AG's office in January 2019. He gave an overview of the responsibilities of the Attorney General's office, and them focused on internet safety. The Attorney General's office has several areas of focus: advocating for consumers, litigation and legislation. They also helped to shape the Chicago Police Department's Consent Decree. Ryan advised to NEVER give anyone who calls you (saying they are from either SSA or IRS), any personal information like your social security or bank account numbers. These agencies DO NOT call, but will send written communications. They would never ask you for that information. Some scammers call identifying themselves as a utility notifying you that your account is severely past due and you need to provide a credit card, or gift card to prevent the utility from being cut off. Also never give those callers any passwords. Don't reuse passwords and do not click on any links contained in uninitiated communications. If you get an email from a friend asking you to purchase something, bail someone out of jail, etc., DON'T do it. Another thing to do if you get an email confirming a purchase that you know is fraudulent, do not clink on the link or call the number in the email. Get out of the email and go to the company's website for verification. Identity Theft is major problem. Unemployment benefits have been targeted since the pandemic. Anyone experiencing this, should contact the AG's office via their website. There, you can let them know of the fraud, and also access what to do in this case with regards to your credit rating and creditors. Since the AG's office is involved in so many facets of consumer protection, it is highly recommended to visit their website, illinoisattornerygeneral.gov. |