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staysafeonline.org
· 2025-12-08
This educational article outlines five common charity scams that exploit people's generosity, particularly following disasters: fake FEMA websites impersonating government relief agencies, fraudulent charities mimicking legitimate organizations, phony crowdfunding campaigns using false stories, scam contractors demanding upfront payment, and sketchy peer-to-peer payment requests. The article provides safety guidance including donating only through official charity websites verified on CharityNavigator.org, avoiding unsolicited links and payment methods like gift cards or wire transfers, and verifying contractor credentials before hiring.
theberkshireedge.com
· 2025-12-08
Adams Community Bank announced a partnership with Carefull, a financial safety platform, to offer free fraud and scam protection to its account holders, making ACB the first bank in Western Massachusetts to provide this service. The Carefull platform monitors accounts for unusual activity, detects romance scams and other financial exploitation, analyzes suspicious communications, and provides secure storage for important documents and records with $1 million identity theft insurance. This initiative reflects ACB's commitment to protecting seniors and their families as elder fraud cases continue to rise.
techtimes.com
· 2025-12-08
Artificial intelligence has dramatically enhanced catfishing and romance scams, enabling fraudsters to create realistic fake profiles, deepfake videos, and AI-generated voices that allow them to conduct convincing long-term deceptions with minimal effort. These scams exploit emotional vulnerability by targeting loneliness and trust, making it increasingly difficult for victims to distinguish between real and fake interactions, even during video calls. Protection requires education about AI-facilitated fraud risks and vigilance on dating platforms, including avoiding individuals who refuse to meet in person or seem "too perfect."
anz.com.au
· 2025-12-08
ANZ Bank has successfully prevented thousands of fraudulent payments through its Confirmation of Payee (CoP) feature, which alerts customers when payment recipient details don't match bank records; since launch, 143,303 payments were abandoned by customers, with 10,040 going to accounts flagged on the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange. The bank emphasizes that combating scams requires collaboration between financial institutions, customers, and authorities, alongside technological innovations like the Digital Padlock feature and partnerships with fraud intelligence networks. Australia's coordinated approach has contributed to a 25.9% decrease in reported scam losses in 2024 compared to 2023, demonstrating that awareness and prevention strategies are
ktlo.com
· 2025-12-08
Baxter County, Arkansas is experiencing a rise in scams targeting residents, prompting local law enforcement to host a public call-in program with Sheriff John Montgomery to educate citizens on fraud prevention. The initiative follows recent arrests of three men accused of acting as "money mules" for overseas scam operations; common schemes affecting residents include government impersonation, tech support fraud, fake sweepstakes, romance scams, and home repair fraud using phishing emails, robocalls, and spoofed numbers.
fox32chicago.com
· 2025-12-08
The FBI has warned seniors about the Phantom Hacker Scam, which has cost Americans over $1 billion since at least 2024 by draining life savings and retirement accounts. The scam operates in three phases—a tech support impostor gains remote computer access, a financial institution impostor convinces victims to transfer funds to a "safe" account via wire transfer or cryptocurrency, and potentially a government impostor prompts further transfers to "alias" accounts. Security experts emphasize that victims rarely recover their money unless they report the theft immediately, and scammers increasingly use artificial intelligence to target seniors based on their personal interests and social media profiles.
republicworld.com
· 2025-12-08
A Maharashtra government employee lost approximately Rs 2 lakh after clicking on a malicious WhatsApp "e-wedding" invitation disguised as an Android application package (.apk) file from an unknown number. The malware installed on the victim's device gave cybercriminals access to sensitive data and bank account details, enabling fraudulent transactions. The article advises victims to report incidents to the National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, notify banks immediately, change passwords, and prevent such scams by avoiding suspicious links, enabling two-factor authentication, and downloading apps only from official sources.
analyticsinsight.net
· 2025-12-08
A cybercriminal group called ShinyHunters breached Google's systems in June 2025, compromising nearly 2.5 billion Gmail users' contact information, business names, and notes—though passwords were not exposed. Following the breach's discovery on the dark web in August 2025, attackers launched phishing campaigns using spoofed calls, fake emails, and text messages impersonating Google to trick victims into revealing login credentials and sensitive documents. Cybersecurity experts recommend users ignore unsolicited Google communications and enable two-factor authentication to protect their accounts.
foxnews.com
· 2025-12-08
The Phantom Hacker Scam has cost Americans over $1 billion since 2024 by targeting seniors through a three-phase operation: tech support impostor gains remote computer access, financial institution impostor convinces victims to move funds to a "safe" account via wire transfer or cryptocurrency, and government impostor directs further transfers to "alias" accounts. Cybersecurity experts warn the scam is "devastating" for seniors as victims rarely recover their funds, with recovery rates in single-digit percentages only if reported immediately, and criminals increasingly use AI to personalize attacks based on social media profiles.
thestar.com.my
· 2025-12-08
A Pew Research Center survey of over 9,000 U.S. adults found that approximately 73% experienced at least one online scam or attack, with credit card fraud, shopping scams, and ransomware being most common; notably, adults aged 18-59 were 34% more likely than those 60+ to report losing money to fraud. Cybersecurity experts warn of emerging threats including unsolicited calendar invites containing phishing links or malware, and multi-factor authentication app attacks designed to wear down users into revealing personal information. Protection measures include adjusting calendar settings to prevent automatic invite updates, verifying suspicious invitations through direct contact with trusted sources, and ign
pbs.org
· 2025-12-08
Sophisticated criminal networks are using stolen identities to create "ghost students" and flood U.S. community college application systems to siphon millions in financial aid. The U.S. Department of Education has identified $150 million dispersed to ineligible students, including $30 million to deceased individuals, with victims including both colleges and people whose identities were stolen to fraudulently obtain student loans. These overseas fraud rings operating from countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Vietnam target community colleges due to their open-access policies and also exploit .edu email addresses for additional fraud schemes involving discounts on software and services.
bctv.org
· 2025-12-08
Eleven individuals were arrested in connection with an alleged $10 billion Medicare fraud scheme, highlighting a growing problem in healthcare fraud that costs the U.S. billions annually. Capital Blue Cross reports an uptick in fraudulent claims involving durable medical equipment (DME), with scammers using medical knowledge to submit false claims for services never provided or needed. The organization recommends protecting yourself by safeguarding personal information, verifying DME prescriptions with your doctor, monitoring insurance statements, and reporting suspicious activity immediately.
newsbreak.com
· 2025-12-08
This educational article from FODMAP Everyday® identifies 12 items people over 50 should remove from their wallets to protect against identity theft and fraud. The piece emphasizes that elder fraud is a critical threat, citing FBI data showing scams targeting people over 60 caused $3.4 billion in losses in 2023 (averaging $33,915 per victim), with total fraud losses reaching $12.5 billion in 2024—a 25% increase year-over-year. Key recommendations include removing Social Security cards, excessive credit cards, and debit cards, as thieves can use these items to commit identity theft, credit card fraud, and drain
bucks.crimewatchpa.com
· 2025-12-08
This article announces a free fraud prevention workshop hosted by Representative Tina Davis on September 5th at the Bristol Township Senior Center, designed to educate residents about common scams including phishing emails, family emergency schemes, and fake bank communications. The interactive event features experts from the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office, AARP, and local police who will provide guidance on avoiding identity theft, freezing credit reports, recognizing scams, and reporting fraud to authorities.
trak.in
· 2025-12-08
OneCard issued an advisory about WhatsApp Screen Mirroring Fraud, where scammers impersonate bank officials and trick users into enabling screen-sharing to steal OTPs, banking credentials, and UPI PINs for unauthorized transactions and identity theft. To prevent this scam, users should verify caller identity through official channels, avoid screen-sharing with untrusted parties, never share banking details under pressure, and report suspicious activity to authorities. The scam particularly targets vulnerable populations including senior citizens unfamiliar with digital tools.
radiotexaslive.com
· 2025-12-08
The FBI has issued a warning about five rising scams in Texas: check washing (altering stolen or intercepted checks), swatting (making false emergency calls to send law enforcement to an address), doxxing (stealing personal information and threatening to publish it online), phishing (fraudulent emails impersonating banks to steal credentials), and one additional unspecified scam. The article emphasizes that awareness and education are critical tools for preventing victimization, and advises Texans to verify suspicious communications directly with their banks and be cautious of unsolicited emails and links.
nzta.govt.nz
· 2025-12-08
This educational piece explains that scams involve fraudsters impersonating legitimate organizations through email, calls, or texts to extract personal information (driver's license numbers, credit card details) or trick victims into making payments for seemingly legitimate services like vehicle registration. The organization advises recipients to immediately report any suspicious communications so they can verify authenticity and take protective action.
kwch.com
· 2025-12-08
A patient at Ascension Via Christi St. Joseph Hospital in Wichita, Kansas received multiple scam calls on her husband's hospital room phone attempting to sell various insurance products (Medicaid, life insurance, and auto insurance), with six calls arriving within two hours and continuing into nighttime hours. The hospital acknowledged that room phone numbers can be reached by robocall technology, though they reported no widespread scam call issue at their facility; the problem affects hospitals nationwide despite federal legislation like the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act passed in 2019. Hospital staff advise patients to hang up on suspicious calls and never share personal, financial, or medical information over the phone
thetimes24-7.com
· 2025-12-08
AI-powered travel scams are evolving rapidly, with con artists using advanced technology to create deepfake customer service agents, sophisticated phishing emails mimicking legitimate booking confirmations, and fake booking websites designed to steal travelers' personal and financial information. Travelers can protect themselves by verifying caller identities through official channels, enabling two-factor authentication, checking for grammatical errors and suspicious links in emails, and logging directly into official websites rather than clicking email links to confirm bookings.
shu.edu
· 2025-12-08
The Department of Information Technology issued a cybersecurity alert warning of a surge in phishing scams targeting Seton Hall's community, particularly during busy academic periods like semester starts and financial aid deadlines. Common tactics include fake Google Forms mimicking university branding, cloned login pages, credential theft targeting faculty and staff whose accounts are then used to defraud students, and financial fraud redirecting legitimate payments to fraudulent accounts. Protection measures include enabling multi-factor authentication, avoiding suspicious links, being skeptical of urgent requests, never sharing passwords, and reporting suspected phishing to IT security.
mirror.co.uk
· 2025-12-08
Romance scammers are exploiting AI technology to scale their fraud operations, using deepfakes, authentic-looking messages, and chatbots to target thousands of victims simultaneously. Common tactics include "love bombing" (rapid declarations of love and manipulation), small initial money requests that escalate to large sums for travel or visa fees, and requests for gift cards or charitable donations that are difficult to trace. People should watch for red flags such as overly quick emotional escalation, requests for money under various pretexts, and inconsistencies in the scammer's story to avoid losing significant amounts of money to these evolving scams.
myjoyonline.com
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese and 39 Filipinos) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, with additional deportations of 51 more foreign nationals ongoing, following a December operation that arrested 792 suspected cybercriminals in Lagos. These foreign cybercrime syndicates, often working with Nigerian accomplices, targeted victims primarily in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Europe through romance scams and fraudulent cryptocurrency investment schemes that deceived victims into transferring money or revealing sensitive financial information.
graphic.com.gh
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese and 39 Filipinos) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, with additional deportations of 51 more individuals ongoing. The deportations are part of a broader crackdown on online scam operations based in Nigeria that use romance schemes and fake cryptocurrency investment offers to defraud victims—primarily Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and Europeans—out of their savings and business capital. The scams involve foreign criminal syndicates recruiting Nigerian accomplices to conduct phishing attacks and convince victims to transfer money or reveal sensitive account information.
cryptopolitan.com
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese and 39 Filipino) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, following their June conviction by federal high court and arrest in December 2024 after dismantling their operational base in Lagos. The deportations are part of intensified crackdowns on online scams, including fake cryptocurrency investment schemes like Crypto Bridge Exchange, which defrauded Nigerian victims of their entire savings and reportedly led to suicides. The EFCC, working with foreign criminal networks that recruit young Nigerian accomplices, continues identifying and shutting down scam hideouts while targeting victims primarily in the United States, Canada
adomonline.com
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese, 39 Filipino, and 3 others) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, with additional deportations of 51 more individuals occurring since mid-August. The deportations are part of a broader crackdown on online scam operations based in Nigeria that lure victims—primarily Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and Europeans—through romance schemes and fake cryptocurrency investment opportunities. These sophisticated fraud operations, often involving foreign criminal syndicates exploiting Nigeria's weak cybersecurity infrastructure in collaboration with local accomplices, have left victims unable to recover savings, business capital, and borrowed funds.
pulse.com.gh
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria deported over 100 foreign cybercriminals (primarily Chinese and Filipino nationals) convicted of orchestrating romance and cryptocurrency investment scams that defrauded victims worldwide out of millions. The deportations, announced by Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, were part of a larger crackdown that arrested 792 suspected cybercriminals in Lagos in December, signaling the country's commitment to combating international fraud syndicates that exploit its infrastructure to target victims in North America and Europe.
abcnews.go.com
· 2025-12-08
A Denver man lost $17,000 to a scammer after calling United Airlines' customer service number to rebook a cancelled flight; the scammer, posing as a United agent named "David," convinced him to pay through a fraudulent payment link under the guise of a refund later, then disappeared without processing the promised refund. United Airlines confirmed the charge never reached their system and is conducting an investigation into how the call was transferred to the scammer within their system.
upnorthvoice.com
· 2025-12-08
Prosecutor LaDonna Schulz presented to 50 seniors in Ogemaw County, Michigan, on June 18 about financial elder abuse, explaining that seniors are targeted because they typically have substantial assets and are reluctant to report scams due to embarrassment or fear of losing financial independence. The FBI reported 101,068 fraud complaints from people over 60 in 2023 resulting in $3.4 billion in losses, compared to $360 million lost by people aged 20-29, with common scams including romance fraud, phishing, fake charities, and toll/traffic ticket schemes. Schulz recommended protective measures such as placing credit freezes, setting up
freepressjournal.in
· 2025-12-08
A 49-year-old Mumbai Police constable lost Rs 8.13 lakh after downloading a malicious application disguised as "RTO Chalan.apk" from a WhatsApp group link in July 2025. The fraudsters used his compromised account to obtain an unauthorized loan and conduct 17 unauthorized transactions on the same day; the crime was discovered in August when the victim checked his account balance and filed an FIR with Tardeo Police.
tribtoday.com
· 2025-12-08
Scammers are increasingly targeting senior citizens with evolving schemes involving cryptocurrency, gift cards, and virtual currencies, often using urgent or threatening language about fines, arrests, or family emergencies to pressure victims into immediate payment. Ohio reported 16,741 financial exploitation referrals of older residents between July 2024 and June 2025, demonstrating the widespread impact of these frauds. Key prevention measures include avoiding sharing personal or financial information with unsolicited contacts, verifying requests through official phone numbers, researching businesses before sending money, and trusting instincts when offers seem suspicious.
tribtoday.com
· 2025-12-08
SCOPE (Senior Citizens Opportunity for Personal Endeavor) in Trumbull County created a vetted business list to protect seniors from scams and unreputable service providers. The list includes contractors, home health services, transportation, and other vendors that undergo thorough vetting including insurance, bonding, and background checks. The initiative began after seniors at local centers and a 4,000-member Facebook group were being targeted by questionable businesses, and it now helps seniors safely hire services while providing legitimate businesses access to this demographic.
sacobserver.com
· 2025-12-08
A Chase Bank and AARP awareness event in Sacramento educated approximately 50 seniors about fraud prevention after California consumers lost over $1.7 billion to fraud in 2024, with people aged 60+ suffering hundreds of millions in losses. Experts highlighted common scams targeting older adults through fear (utility shutoffs), excitement (lottery wins), and romance schemes, emphasizing that identity theft is the #1 form of fraud occurring every two seconds in the U.S. The presentation recommended securing personal documents in safes, updating passwords regularly, avoiding unsolicited calls and links, and reporting suspicious activity to prevent emotional and financial devastation.
newsbreak.com
· 2025-12-08
The article discusses a surge in impersonation scams targeting seniors, where scammers pose as government agencies or trusted businesses (like Amazon) to convince victims to transfer money for "protection," ultimately stealing it. The FTC reports a nearly 200% increase in reports of older Americans losing up to $10,000 since 2020, with a 400% increase in losses exceeding $100,000, and younger Americans are increasingly affected. The piece provides protective advice including being wary of money transfer requests, refusing demands for gift cards or cryptocurrency transfers, and hanging up to independently verify caller claims.
enews.wvu.edu
· 2025-12-08
nzta.govt.nz
· 2025-12-08
Text message scams impersonate government agencies by requesting urgent action (within 24 hours) on vehicle licenses, tolls, or traffic tickets, often including malicious links. Legitimate messages from authorities only originate from specific numbers like 3651 and do not contain links for online transactions. Individuals should verify communications directly with official government sources rather than clicking links in unsolicited texts.
aljazeera.com
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese and 39 Filipinos) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, with additional deportations of 39 Filipinos, 10 Chinese, and 2 Kazakhs since mid-August. The deportees were part of a larger operation targeting romance scam networks that lured victims—primarily Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and Europeans—into fake cryptocurrency investment schemes, with 792 suspected cybercriminals arrested in Lagos in December 2024. The EFCC noted that foreign cybercrime syndicates exploit Nigeria's weak cybersecurity infrastructure and recruit local accomplices to conduct
newschannel9.com
· 2025-12-08
A Chattanooga man lost $254,000 in a romance scam after meeting a scammer on a dating app who promised marriage and a life in Florida; he quit his job, sold his home, and showed up at the airport only to discover the ticket didn't exist and his accounts were emptied. Hamilton County investigators recovered $159,987.69 from the scammer's accounts. In a separate case, detectives recovered the full $54,000 stolen from another victim who was targeted by someone impersonating a U.S. Department of the Treasury representative demanding payment via cashier's check and gift cards.
yahoo.com
· 2025-12-08
Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission deported 102 foreign nationals (60 Chinese, 39 Filipinos, and others) convicted of cyber-terrorism and internet fraud, including romance scams that lured victims into fake cryptocurrency investments. The deportations followed a December operation in Lagos that arrested 792 suspected cybercriminals, with additional deportations ongoing as part of Nigeria's crackdown on organized online scam operations targeting primarily Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and Europeans. These sophisticated schemes typically involve foreign gangs recruiting Nigerian accomplices to conduct phishing attacks and persuade victims to transfer money or reveal sensitive account information.
commonsenseinstituteus.org
· 2025-12-08
Financial fraud in Oregon resulted in an estimated $201 million in reported losses and $1.2 billion in unreported losses in 2025, with the FBI and FTC reporting significant increases in fraud cases nationwide. The state's economy faces a projected $3.9 billion reduction in GDP, $2.6 billion reduction in personal income, and approximately 15,000 job losses due to all financial fraud (reported and unreported). Oregon ranks 26th-28th among states for cyber-enabled crime losses and elder fraud complaints, with fraud cases up 3,336 since 2022 and total losses up 285% since 2020.
itnews.com.au
· 2025-12-08
Security researchers at Guardio tested Perplexity.ai's Comet autonomous AI browser and found it vulnerable to multiple scams and phishing attacks, including completing fraudulent transactions on a fake Walmart site, clicking links in phishing emails, and falling for prompt injection attacks on CAPTCHA pages. The research reveals that agentic AI browsers lack the natural skepticism humans apply to online interactions and inherit AI's tendency to trust easily and execute instructions without full context. Guardio recommends integrating proven security measures like phishing detection, URL reputation checks, and malicious file scanning into AI decision-making processes to protect users.
republicanherald.com
· 2025-12-08
David P. Shallcross, director of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Senior Protection Unit, conducted a fraud awareness seminar for approximately 25 seniors in Friedensburg, highlighting common scams targeting older adults including the "Sweetheart Swindle" (where scammers pose as romantic interests to extract money), lottery/investment schemes, and cryptocurrency fraud. Shallcross provided protective strategies such as verifying information sources, recognizing red flags like unsolicited requests for gift card payments, and using verification tools like the SEC's EDGAR database and FINRA.org; he noted that the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office returned $1.2 million to scam victims in
pasadenanow.com
· 2025-12-08
California seniors lose an average of $46,000 daily to scammers, ranking the state third-worst nationally for elder fraud losses. In 2024, investment scams caused $1.8 billion in losses to older adults, while phishing and spoofing attacks surged 700% year-over-year, with 72% of cybercrimes enabled by exposed personal data. In response to rising elder abuse cases in LA County, the La Pintoresca Branch Library in Pasadena is hosting a free bilingual "Financial Exploitation Prevention Workshop" to educate seniors on recognizing and preventing fraud.
foxnews.com
· 2025-12-08
This educational piece explains how criminals target retirees' retirement accounts and personal data, noting that elder fraud caused over $4.9 billion in losses in 2024, with 72% of cases involving personal data found online. The article advises retirees to remove their information from data broker websites and databases—either manually or through automated removal services—to reduce their vulnerability to identity theft, phishing attacks, and social engineering scams. Taking these protective steps helps secure hard-earned retirement savings by limiting the personal information scammers can use to craft convincing fraud attempts.
army.mil
· 2025-12-08
Military service members and their families face elevated fraud risks during high-stress periods like deployment transitions, with the Better Business Bureau reporting 273,937 complaints from military consumers between 2019-2024 and higher median losses compared to nonmilitary consumers. Common scams targeting this population include fake rental listings requiring advance payments, phishing emails impersonating military financial officials, and investment fraud promising unrealistic returns. To protect themselves, service members should use credit cards over cryptocurrency or wire transfers, verify requests by contacting organizations directly, and communicate openly with family members about finances.
students.wvu.edu
· 2025-12-08
This educational advisory warns students, faculty, and staff to remain vigilant against cybercriminal scams targeting universities at the start of the semester, including fake job and scholarship offers, AI-powered phishing emails and voice calls impersonating authority figures, and malicious QR codes ("quishing"). The article advises verifying unexpected or urgent requests through trusted channels, never sharing sensitive credentials or personal information in unsolicited messages, and reporting suspicious emails to the university's security team.
techradar.com
· 2025-12-08
Romance scams cost victims over £106 million in 2024 in the UK alone, with fraudsters increasingly using AI-generated deepfakes and synthetic identities to impersonate celebrities and trusted individuals, as demonstrated by a case where a French woman lost €830,000 to fake Brad Pitt impersonators. Beyond romance fraud, these same tactics are being deployed in investment scams, phishing attacks, and social engineering schemes, with investment scam losses reaching £144.4 million in 2024 and one Georgian network defrauding victims across multiple countries of $35 million using deepfake videos of money expert Martin Lewis.
brobible.com
· 2025-12-08
A Tennessee woman and multiple passengers were scammed at Knoxville airport when an American Airlines worker handed them a Post-it note with a fraudulent phone number claiming they needed to rebook their flights due to late bag check-in; when they called the number, scammers posing as airline representatives collected their credit card information. The incident affected at least several passengers, with victims advised to cancel their payment cards, and a similar scam was reported on Reddit involving a fake airline rebooking service charging $160.
fox5atlanta.com
· 2025-12-08
Fulton County, Georgia launched the Avoid Cyber Threats (A.C.T) Training campaign, a free self-paced program for residents 55 and older to help recognize and prevent online scams. The initiative responds to a surge in senior fraud cases—seniors account for nearly 40% of all fraud-related losses, and Americans 60+ lost $4.9 billion to scammers in 2024, with the average victim losing $83,000. The program covers phishing scams, personal information safeguarding, and emerging threats like AI voice cloning, with a county goal of training 2,000 seniors and caregivers by year's end.
woay.com
· 2025-12-08
Older adults in West Virginia are frequently targeted by scammers using robocalls, texts, and social media schemes that exploit personal information to build false credibility. Common tactics include impersonating legitimate businesses, the IRS, or family members in distress, then pressuring victims to purchase Green Dot cards, Bitcoin, or other untraceable payment methods. Police advise seniors to question callers without disclosing personal information and recognize that legitimate businesses never operate through unsolicited contact demanding immediate payment.
cnn.com
· 2025-12-08
Financial scams have become increasingly prevalent and sophisticated, with the FBI reporting $16.6 billion in cybercrime losses in the past year—a 33% increase over the prior year with an average loss of $19,372 per victim. The FTC documented a more-than-four-fold increase between 2020 and 2024 in reports of older Americans (age 60+) losing $10,000 or more to scams, with some victims emptying entire bank accounts and retirement funds. Common schemes include imposter scams masquerading as government agencies or businesses, tech support scams, and prize/sweepstakes frauds, with red flags