How to Mitigate Elder Fraud and Cyber Scams

Four Common Types of Elder Fraud and How to Protect Yourself and Your Loved Ones

As our society becomes increasingly more connected through the internet, cybersecurity has become a major challenge. Data breaches, hackings, online scams, and other cybercrimes have become more common over the last few years and will continue to be a cause for concern. This increase in cybercrime has led to more elder fraud and has made it more difficult to determine what is real and what is not online.

Although cybercrime impacts Americans of all ages, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) 2023 Elder Fraud Report, Americans aged 60 years and older are disproportionately impacted. These individuals, according to the FBI, are attractive targets for cybercriminals because they may be more trusting, tend to have better credit, and they might not know how to report cybercrimes if they fall victim to them.

The Cost of Cybercrime and Online Scams

Being a victim of cybercrime can be devastating and expensive. Scams targeting individuals 60 and older resulted in over $3.4 billion in losses in 2023, costing the average victim $33,915. Beyond the financial cost, the emotional toll can be significant. Victims of elder fraud may feel shame, guilt, or isolation, which may cause them not to report the crime.

Additionally, they may fear that their families will lose trust in their ability to manage finances or make important decisions.

Four Ways to Mitigate Elder Fraud

Understanding the common types of elder fraud and the techniques used by cybercriminals can help to prevent these scams. By knowing what to look for, including the associated warning signs, you can stop fraud attempts in their tracks.

Here are four of the most common types of cybercrimes that especially impact seniors:

1. Tech Support or Government Impersonations Scams – Many scammers may take advantage of the fact that people are not likely to question authority figures, or they may fear the consequences that the scammers threatened. One of the most common kinds of elder fraud includes criminals posing as tech support representatives offering to fix nonexistent computer issues. They may also claim to be from a government agency, such as the IRS or Social Security Administration, demanding payments for supposed unpaid taxes.
2. Investment Fraud – This involves complex financial crimes often characterized as low-risk investments with guaranteed returns. Criminals use fictitious identities to develop relationships and establish credibility with targeted individuals. In 2023, older individuals reported losses of over $1.2 billion to these schemes.
3. Confidence/Romance Schemes – These types of scams are designed to take advantage of an older individual who may be lonely and seeking companionship. Scammers use the illusion of a romantic or close relationship to manipulate and/or steal from an individual. In 2023, individuals over 60 reportedly lost almost $357 million in losses to confidence/romance scams.
4. Cryptocurrency Scams – In 2023, the IC3 received over 15,000 complaints from individuals over the age of 60 involving the use of cryptocurrency. Scammers convince targeted individuals to withdraw large sums of cash and deposit into cryptocurrency ATMs or kiosks at specific locations they provide. Once cash is deposited and converted into cryptocurrency, the scammer transfers it to other cryptocurrency accounts. Losses to these complaints totaled over $1.1 billion.

Common Signs of Fraud and Scams

Elder fraud and scams will continue to evolve, but many characteristics remain the same. Some red flags to identify a scam or fraud may include:

• A sense of urgency – Scammers tend to create a sense of urgency to induce fear and lure victims into immediate action.
• Unsolicited communication – Be cautious of phone calls, mailings, and door-to-door service offers you didn’t request.
• It sounds too good to be true – Investment scams often promise “low-risk, high-reward” returns. If something sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.
• Unusual financial activity – Unexplained withdrawals or sudden changes in financial accounts could be signs of fraud.

What to Do if You Are a Victim of Elder Fraud

If you believe you or someone you know may have been a victim of elder fraud, file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. In addition, reach out to your bank or credit card company immediately to report suspicious activity and freeze accounts if necessary. Reporting internet crimes can help bring criminals to justice and make the internet a safer place for us all.

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