Digital Capture
The AARP Bulletin is always a good read, and the May edition has several articles that particularly caught our attention. They include a highly informational conversation with Frank Abagnale, “the AARP Fraud Watch Network ambassador” whose long-ago exploits as a master check forger were chronicled in the Steven Spielberg movie “Catch Me If You Can.” In a conversation with journalist Hugh Delehanty, Abagnale offers cautionary advice about today’s “ingenious scams” and he says one of the most popular is “what they call account takeover. You write me a check, and I simply go online to a check-printing service and order 200 checks with your account information. I might even put my own name and address on them. Most people don’t reconcile their bank accounts. By your next statement, I’ve already written checks that have cleared your account.” Among other excellent pieces in the issue: Jane Bryant Quinn on estate planning for couples who have former spouses.