and you thought old people would be wiser and more aware of scams like these.
The more well read and cynical when they were younger are safe from scams most of the time. The lonely and generally greedy ones are the most likely to get victimized.
Of course, it goes without saying that this applies to the younger folk and not just the old codgers.
Furthermore, one of the reasons why old folks get swindled more than the younger ones is because we all tend to become more trusting when we get older. This is not helped with that stupid saying "wisdom comes with age" >_>