While financial fraud can happen to anyone, older adults are uniquely vulnerable to finance scams, which increasingly target this age group.
Losses from finance scams targeting those aged 60 or older surged to $3.4 billion last year, up 11% from the previous year, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. The average loss was $33,915.
Tech support scams are most common among older adults, followed by personal data breaches and romance scams, where scammers build trust before asking for money. Older adults are attractive targets due to their savings, assets, and sometimes greater trust and reluctance to report scams.
“They are willing to take the phone call,” says Mark Kapczynski of Onerep. “A fraudster can build an immediate sense of trust and execute the con,” he adds.
Adopt Fraud-Prevention Habits
Experts recommend basic protective steps to help keep older adults safe. Alex Rhodes of Adyen advises checking for secure websites, avoiding sharing personal data on public Wi-Fi, using strong passwords, and enabling two-factor authentication. He also suggests using credit cards for online shopping due to their built-in fraud prevention tools.
Eva Velasquez of the Identity Theft Resource Center advises verifying unsolicited communications by contacting the source using confirmed contact information.
Rely on Trusted Contacts
Charles Weeks of Barrister recommends being aware of relationship-based scams and suggests involving multiple trusted people to monitor accounts. Taylor Patskanick from MIT AgeLab highlights the role of community-based bystanders, like hairstylists or pharmacy technicians, in noticing and potentially intervening in scams.
Talk About Finance Scams Openly
Reducing the stigma around scams by discussing them openly can make it easier for victims to come forward. “The No. 1 thing I stress to my clients is to have an open dialogue,” Weeks says. He advises responding with empathy if a loved one is scammed.
Kapczynski shares a personal experience of nearly falling for a gift card scam, emphasizing that even savvy individuals can be duped and should feel comfortable asking for help.
Assess Vulnerabilities and Use Resources
Velasquez suggests assessing personal vulnerabilities based on lifestyle, such as freezing credit to prevent new accounts from being opened. Her organization, the Identity Theft Resource Center, offers help in identifying finance scams.
Additional resources include the AARP Fraud Watch Network, the FTC, the FBI, and Fraud.org. “You don’t have to figure this out on your own,” Velasquez says.
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