Protecting a family farm requires more than managing its land, livestock and crops. It also requires protecting the financial foundation that supports the operation—and the legacy intended for the next generation.
A new episode of Surviving the Family Farm examines how increasingly sophisticated scams are targeting farmers, older adults and rural families. The episode features Shannon Drudik, vice president and compliance officer at Heartland Bank, and Corey Swartzendruber, senior vice president and IT director.
Drudik said artificial intelligence and other technology can help scammers create convincing websites, photographs, invoices and communications for equipment that may not exist.
“One of the red flags to look for with equipment sales is, is it too good to be true?” Drudik said.
She encouraged buyers to examine where requested payments are being sent, particularly when a seller asks for a wire transfer. Buyers should determine whether the recipient’s name matches the dealership or has another clear connection to the business.
Distance can also help a scammer avoid scrutiny.
“What happens is you wire the money and you drive 500 miles to the south, only to find an empty parking lot and nobody to be reached or contacted—and you already sent that money,” Drudik said.
In one case, a customer found what appeared to be a legitimate equipment dealership online. Its website, photographs and phone number all appeared convincing. Further investigation revealed that the actual business had closed years earlier.
Drudik recommended independently contacting a chamber of commerce, post office or neighboring business before sending money. A prospective buyer can also request a live video call in which the seller walks around the equipment and demonstrates that it is physically available.
“If it’s actually there, they should be able to do that,” she said. “And if they’re not willing to, I’d be asking why.”
The episode also addresses romance scams, which Drudik said are a daily or weekly concern. Scammers build an emotional relationship with a victim before asking for money or collecting enough personal information to open an account in the victim’s name.
Older or recently widowed people can be particularly vulnerable. Public obituaries may provide scammers with family names, locations, occupations, military history and hobbies that can be used to manufacture a personal connection.
Drudik said relatives should not ignore their concerns, but they must approach the conversation without embarrassing or blaming the person involved.
“Don’t make them feel bad about it,” Drudik said. “Just say, ‘I care about you. Will you let me help?’”
The conversation also covers investment and cryptocurrency schemes sometimes called “pig butchering.” In these scams, a victim is shown what appears to be a rapidly growing investment balance and is encouraged to continue contributing money. Guaranteed returns, pressure to act immediately and requests to move communication away from a legitimate platform are major warning signs.
Everyday security habits can provide another layer of protection. Swartzendruber recommended using longer, unique passwords and avoiding words or phrases that would be easy to associate with the user.
Swartzendruber also encouraged people to enable multi-factor authentication whenever it is available.
“I can guess your ‘Huskers123,’ but I can’t make your fingerprint,” he said.
Financial accounts should receive the highest priority, followed by email and social-media accounts. Consumers should also regularly review their bank transactions instead of opening an online-banking account and rarely checking it.
The episode concludes with a look at Heartland Bank’s customer-protection tools. HB Alerts can notify customers about transactions, low balances, password changes and other account activity. Card Controls allow customers to monitor or temporarily disable a debit card through the bank’s mobile app. Credit Sense provides credit monitoring that may help users recognize suspicious activity or identity theft.
Drudik and Swartzendruber emphasized that a legitimate bank will not ask customers to disclose their online-banking passwords, full debit-card numbers or PINs.
Listen to the complete Surviving the Family Farm conversation to learn how to recognize today’s most common scams and protect your family, finances and farm operation.
This episode of Surviving the Family Farm is presented in partnership with Heartland Bank. Additional fraud-prevention information is available at MyHeartland.Bank.
