Elderus exists to raise awareness of the elder fraud crisis in America, educate and protect older adults and their families, and hold institutions accountable for doing a better job.
Every year, Americans over 65 lose an estimated $28.3 billion to fraud. Only a fraction of that gets reported. Behind every number is a real person — someone's parent, someone's grandparent, someone who spent a lifetime building something that was stolen in a phone call.
The people targeted by these crimes are not foolish. They are not careless. They were raised in a world where a phone call from someone official probably was official. That foundational trust is one of the best qualities of their generation — and it's exactly what criminals have learned to weaponize.
Elderus is built on a simple principle: the criminal is always the problem, never the person who was targeted. Being scammed is a reflection of criminal sophistication, not of the victim's intelligence. William Webster — former director of both the FBI and the CIA — was himself a victim of fraud. It can happen to anyone.
We combine a research database of 19,276+ fraud-related articles, educational guides covering 30+ scam types, an interactive fraud screener, and a weekly newsletter — all designed to educate, protect, and treat older Americans with the dignity they deserve.
I spent four years building and running Charlie, a bank built specifically for American retirees. We served 35,000 customers, earned top app store ratings, an A+ BBB rating, and the trust of a community that most of the financial industry ignores.
Through Charlie, I witnessed the elder fraud crisis firsthand. I saw customers lose their savings to romance scams, grandparent scams, and government impersonation schemes. I saw the shame that kept them from reporting it. I saw how alone they felt.
That experience made it clear that this crisis needs more than a banking product — it needs education, advocacy, and research. That's why Meagan and I built Elderus.
Never infantilize. Never suggest cognitive decline. Never blame the victim. The criminal is always the problem.
The reason seniors need protection isn't because they've become less capable. It's because the threat is unprecedented. They're facing industrialized, AI-powered, psychologically engineered criminal operations that didn't exist ten years ago. The trait that makes them most vulnerable — trust — is one of their best qualities.
Everything on this site — every guide, every screener response, every newsletter — is written with this principle at its core. You will never see us say "you should have known better." You will always hear us say: "You were right to check."
You are smart. Criminals are professionals. The fact that you're checking means you're already ahead of most people. Here's how this site helps you:
Your parents are facing something no generation has faced before. You can be their ally — not their caretaker. Here's where to start:
Your residents are being targeted. Elderus offers a 52-week fraud education and certification program built specifically for retirement communities, credit unions, and senior-serving organizations.
Elderus is built on a continuously growing database of 19,276+ fraud-related articles collected over four years from 30+ news sources across America. Every article is classified by scam type, delivery mechanism, and geography. This database powers our screener, our guides, and our understanding of how the fraud landscape is changing.
19,276
Articles indexed
33
Scam types tracked
50
States mapped
For press inquiries, speaking engagements, partnership opportunities, or to learn about our certification program for retirement communities: [email protected]