Search
Explore the Archive
Search across 26,669 articles about elder fraud. Filter by fraud type, payment mechanism, or keywords.
8,635 results
in Phishing
aol.com
· 2026-08-24
Scammers using artificial intelligence are mining obituaries to identify and target recently widowed elderly people, with one documented case involving fraudsters who claimed a widow's late husband owed taxes and demanded $7,000 to "preserve her inheritance." According to the FBI, Americans aged 60-plus reported $7.7 billion in cyber crime losses in 2025 (up 59% from 2024), with an average loss of $38,500 per elderly scam case, and recently widowed seniors are particularly vulnerable because they are grieving while managing complex financial and administrative tasks. Fraudsters extract personal information from publicly available obituaries—including names, relatives, employers, and hometowns—
finance.yahoo.com
· 2026-08-24
Fraudsters are using artificial intelligence to scan obituaries and target grieving widows with elaborate scams, including one case where a widow was told she owed $7,000 to cover her late husband's supposed tax evasion scheme. AI enables scammers to quickly extract personal information from public obituaries and generate convincing deepfake communications to create phishing campaigns at scale. Elderly Americans aged 60-plus reported $7.7 billion in cyber fraud losses in 2025, with recently widowed individuals particularly vulnerable due to grief and the financial chaos of settling estates.
mpamag.com
· 2026-08-24
Phishing scams accounted for 52% of Bankwest's cases in financial year 2026, representing the only scam category to increase in volume year-over-year, while overall customer losses declined 43%. Australians aged 65 and over were disproportionately affected, accounting for 51% of scam exposure value at Bankwest, up from 45% the previous year, with the elderly representing 71% of losses across the 55+ age group. The data was released during Scams Awareness Week 2026, as Australians reported over $2.18 billion in total scam losses in 2025.
startsat60.com
· 2026-08-24
Approximately 4.9 million Australians (23% of those surveyed) reported losing money to scams, with online shopping fraud being the most common type affecting an estimated 2.1 million people through fake retailers and fraudulent websites. Other prevalent scams include cryptocurrency fraud (5%), investment/property scams (4%), and romance, impersonation, and insurance scams (3% each), with Australians reporting over $2.18 billion in combined losses across 481,000 scam reports in 2025. Even financial experts are vulnerable to these increasingly sophisticated scams that exploit trust, emotion, and artificial urgency to manipulate victims into acting without proper verification.
sarawaktribune.com
· 2026-08-24
Sarawak has experienced a surge in sophisticated financial scams powered by artificial intelligence and social engineering, with commercial crime cases rising 41.79% to 2,134 cases in the first five months of 2024, resulting in losses exceeding RM71 million. Recent victims include a Kuching woman who lost RM145,247 to a fake job offer, a Miri man who lost RM367,300 to a fraudulent investment scheme, and another individual who lost RM287,000 to a fake stock investment scam. Nationally, Malaysians lost RM2.8 billion to financial scams in 2024, with experts warning that AI-enabled
blog.knowbe4.com
· 2026-08-24
A research study found that AI chatbots are more effective than human scammers at building trust during the initial stages of "pig butchering" romance scams, where victims are manipulated into fake investment schemes over weeks or months. Scammers can use AI to automate the relationship-building phase at scale, then transition to human operators to request money, effectively bypassing security safeguards. Study participants could identify the AI conversations only after being told they had interacted with one, highlighting how difficult it is to detect such deception while being targeted.
newswav.com
· 2026-08-24
Filipino authorities rescued 24 nationals from human trafficking operations in Cambodia after they were lured with false promises of customer service jobs but forced into "catphishing" scams targeting Europeans online. The victims, mostly young professionals, endured physical abuse, verbal assault, and exploitation while working toward recruitment quotas, with some being "sold" between syndicates across Southeast Asia. At least 125 trafficking cases connected to online scam hubs were intercepted in 2024, with traffickers specifically targeting educated, mobile Filipinos with strong communication skills to conduct romance scams, cryptocurrency fraud, and digital extortion operations earning millions.
philstarlife.com
· 2026-08-23
The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) has warned the public about scam text messages impersonating the postal service, which contain fraudulent links and falsely claim delivery issues or request redelivery fees payable by credit card. Scammers use these messages to trick recipients into clicking malicious links or sharing sensitive banking information, which PHLPost does not request via text messages. The postal service advises the public to verify messages through official channels and report suspicious communications to their customer service or to the government's anti-scam hotline 1326.
theguardian.com
· 2026-08-23
Criminals are targeting UK homebuyers through "Friday afternoon fraud," a scam where fake emails impersonating solicitors or estate agents trick victims into transferring property deposits to fraudulent bank accounts, with losses ranging from thousands to £300,000 per victim. Between April 2024 and March 2025, 140 conveyancing fraud cases were recorded with an average loss of £78,393, typically occurring at the end of property sales before weekends. The fraud exploits phishing attacks or hacked email accounts to intercept payment instructions during the conveyancing process when homebuyers expect to transfer significant sums.
yahoo.com
· 2026-08-23
Two Indian nationals were arrested in Arkansas during an undercover police sting while attempting to collect $29,500 from an elderly fraud victim as part of a PayPal refund scam. Prashant Gajera and Dharaben Bavadiya, who pleaded guilty and received suspended five-year prison sentences, were functioning as collectors in a scheme that convinces victims money was mistakenly credited to their PayPal accounts and must be returned. The operation coordinated by local police, Homeland Security Investigations, and a scam-baiting group involved handing the suspects a box containing counterfeit currency during a monitored cash pickup.
bbc.com
· 2026-08-23
A 61-year-old man in Wales fell victim to a QR code parking scam after downloading a fraudulent parking app, which led to unauthorized charges of £1 initially and then a £60 monthly subscription to his bank account. QR code-related scams, known as "quishing," have increased by 700% over four years, with Report Fraud receiving 2,743 reports in the past 12 months compared to just 341 two years prior. Criminals are exploiting the growing use of QR codes in everyday situations like parking meters and advertisements to trick victims into downloading malicious apps or revealing banking details.
pasadenanow.com
· 2026-08-23
The Los Angeles County Superior Court warned residents about a jury duty scam where callers falsely claim victims missed jury service and face arrest warrants to pressure them into providing personal or financial information. The scam involves threatening calls, texts, or emails demanding immediate action or payment, but legitimate court communications never threaten arrest, demand immediate courthouse reporting, or request sensitive information like Social Security numbers or bank details. Residents are advised to verify jury service status through the court's official website and report suspicious communications to local law enforcement or the Federal Trade Commission.
timesfreepress.com
· 2026-08-23
The Better Business Bureau warns that scammers are creating fraudulent QR codes—a scam sometimes called "quishing"—that direct users to fake websites designed to steal personal and financial information. Common schemes include placing fake QR code stickers over legitimate codes on parking meters, causing victims to pay scammers instead of parking authorities and receive parking tickets, or including QR codes in unsolicited packages to trick recipients into scanning them. The BBB advises consumers to treat QR codes with the same caution as suspicious links, verify website addresses before opening pages, and use official apps or websites rather than scanning unknown codes.
hoodline.com
· 2026-08-23
A 75-year-old woman recovering from surgery at a San Antonio hospital was allegedly robbed by someone impersonating a credit union employee, with police seeking the public's help to identify the suspect through Crime Stoppers. This incident is part of a larger pattern of elder fraud in San Antonio, where the police department recorded over 330 financial crimes against seniors in 2025, with imposter scams being among the most common tactics. Texas residents over 60 lost $679 million to financial fraud in 2025 across more than 14,400 cases, prompting enhanced legal penalties under state law for crimes targeting elderly victims.
thewest.com.au
· 2026-08-23
I appreciate you sharing this content, but the text provided appears to be a paywall/subscription page rather than an article about elder fraud. To provide an accurate summary for your database, I would need the actual article content that discusses the scam details, affected individuals, scam type, and financial losses. Could you please share the article text itself?
nst.com.my
· 2026-08-23
Over the past four years through June, 462 Malaysians aged primarily 21-40 lost RM32.7 million (approximately RM20,000 daily) to romance scams originating from dating platforms, where scammers build trust before directing victims to fake investment schemes, bogus trading platforms, and cryptocurrency scams. Malaysia's Deputy Communications Minister announced the government will not mandate dating app identity verification, instead focusing on stronger platform safeguards, improved scam detection, and public awareness to combat these cross-platform crimes. The government is adopting a layered approach involving telecommunications providers, financial institutions, and online platforms to disrupt the scam ecosystem and support investigations.
independent.co.uk
· 2026-08-23
Impersonation scam victims lost an average of £3,516 in the past year, a 10% increase from £3,200 the previous year, according to Lloyds Banking Group data. While overall impersonation scam reports fell 3%, specific types increased, including police impersonation scams where victims were tricked into purchasing gold, with one 85-year-old woman losing £188,000 across eight transactions. Common impersonation scams involve fraudsters posing as banks, police, HMRC, or broadband providers, typically initiating contact via phone, text, email, or social media to pressure victims into transferring money or revealing personal details.
cyberguy.com
· 2026-08-22
Scammers build target lists of older Americans during August and September—months before Medicare Open Enrollment begins in October—by purchasing consumer data from marketing companies that sell detailed demographic information filtered by age, income, and homeownership. A case involving Epsilon Data Management illustrated how this targeting works: two employees sold lists to fraudsters who defrauded over 218,000 victims of $23.7 million, leading to a $150 million settlement. Experts warn that by the time scam calls arrive in fall, criminals have already identified and researched their targets, making it crucial for seniors to protect their personal data during the summer months.
nbcsandiego.com
· 2026-08-22
Two Del Norte High School brothers founded StayCyberSafe, a workshop program that has expanded to approximately 20 chapters worldwide to educate senior citizens about recognizing and protecting themselves from scams. Seniors over age 50 lost $4.8 billion to cybercrime in 2024, highlighting the financial severity of the issue that the workshops address through teaching about social engineering tactics and other scam techniques. The initiative demonstrates the need for community-based fraud prevention efforts, as law enforcement alone cannot manage the thousands of daily scams targeting vulnerable populations.
ncoa.org
· 2026-08-22
A Washington man received a 30-month federal prison sentence for stealing a Vietnam veteran's identity to fraudulently obtain VA benefits over decades, while a New Hampshire man was indicted for defrauding an older veteran of $225,000 through bank and mail fraud. According to the FTC, fraud reports from servicemembers, veterans, and their families totaled approximately $584 million in 2024, with scammers exploiting veterans' trust in VA institutions and their predictable benefit payments through schemes including disability benefit fraud, VA home loan scams, and job scams.
oaklandcounty115.com
· 2026-08-22
The Beverly Hills Department of Public Safety is hosting a free educational presentation on August 22nd at 10am designed to help older adults and seniors recognize common scams, protect personal information, and avoid fraud and identity theft. The presentation welcomes all attendees and will cover today's most prevalent scams targeting older adults, with a second session offered if needed.
salon.com
· 2026-08-22
Columbia House, a mail-order music club that closed in 2024, operated a negative-option billing scam where customers agreed to buy products at full price after receiving 8-12 CDs for a penny, with automatic charges if they failed to return rejection forms each month. The company faced widespread complaints for allegedly ignoring payments, manipulating purchase thresholds, and making subscriptions difficult to cancel, while also underpaying artists through reduced royalties. Despite its unethical practices that made it notorious for customer service abuses, Columbia House attracted nostalgic social media tributes upon closure, with the scam now seeming quaint compared to modern fraud schemes.
globalnation.inquirer.net
· 2026-08-22
A Taiwanese national was arrested in the Philippines for impersonating an FBI agent and scamming foreign nationals by offering to assist them with US legal matters in exchange for money, with the help of a Malaysian accomplice and three Filipino staff members. The suspect used a fake FBI badge and forged documents to convince victims he could handle cases related to the FBI and US Department of Justice. The National Bureau of Investigation apprehended the suspects after conducting a sting operation and will charge them with usurpation of authority and computer-related forgery.
tech.yahoo.com
· 2026-08-22
A study of 22 participants found that an AI chatbot was significantly more effective than human scammers at executing "pig butchering" scams—long-term cons involving emotional manipulation to lure victims into fraudulent investments—with 46% of participants installing a malicious app at the bot's request compared to 18% for human scammers. Participants reported trusting the chatbot more than human scammers, likely due to its ability to maintain consistent engagement, quickly recall personal details, and keep conversations flowing. The research highlights the potential danger of AI-assisted fraud becoming more scalable and widespread, as automation could enable scammers to target more victims cheaply while leaving fewer warning signs.
thecooldown.com
· 2026-08-22
A study comparing an AI chatbot to human scammers in simulated "pig butchering" fraud found the AI bot was significantly more effective, with 46% of participants installing a requested app versus only 18% for human scammers, largely because participants trusted the bot more and it maintained consistent engagement. Pig butchering scams involve fraudsters posing as friends or romantic partners over weeks or months before directing victims to questionable investments, and the research suggests AI automation could make such schemes more scalable, reaching more targets at lower cost with fewer warning signs. The findings highlight the need for stronger safeguards around AI impersonation and platform monitoring to detect and disrupt AI-enabled fraud earlier.
b2b-cyber-security.de
· 2026-08-22
According to Interpol's African Cyberthreat Assessment Report 2026, AI now supports 55 percent of cybercrime cases across Africa, with financial losses more than doubling from $192 million in 2024 to $484 million. Criminals are using AI to automate phishing, create synthetic identities, generate deepfakes for extortion, and conduct targeted fraud campaigns including business email compromise scams and romance scams, with scam centers identified in 72 percent of surveyed African countries. The report highlights that African threat actors are increasingly targeting organizations in Europe and North America through cross-border operations, while also noting that around 600,000 digital sextortion cases were
nbclosangeles.com
· 2026-08-22
Scammers are calling Los Angeles County residents claiming they missed jury duty and have an arrest warrant, threatening legal consequences to pressure victims into providing personal and financial information. The LA County Superior Court confirmed it never calls, texts, or emails residents with arrest threats or requests for Social Security numbers, credit card details, or bank information, and advised residents to verify jury status through the court's website and report suspicious communications to local law enforcement or the FTC.
abc7.com
· 2026-08-22
Scammers in Los Angeles County are calling residents claiming they missed jury duty and face arrest warrants, threatening legal consequences to extort personal and financial information. The Los Angeles County Superior Court warned that it never initiates contact via phone, email, or text to threaten arrest or demand immediate payment, and residents should verify jury status directly through the court's website. Anyone receiving such suspicious communications should not provide personal information and should report the scam to local law enforcement or the Federal Trade Commission.
newrepublic.com
· 2026-08-21
A 24-year-old Nigerian "Yahoo Boy" named Chibuike scammed tens of thousands of dollars from overseas victims by impersonating American celebrities and building fake romantic relationships to extract money through digital manipulation and fake investment schemes. The article explores the real lives of Nigerian romance scammers profiled in a new book that examines how poverty, inequality, and limited economic opportunities drive young West African men into cybercrime targeting vulnerable individuals in English-speaking countries. The piece traces the historical roots of 419 scams back to colonial Nigeria, where similar schemes evolved from impersonation tactics used by officials and ordinary people to exploit victims through false authority and deception.
novanews.co.za
· 2026-08-21
Port Alfred police hosted a fraud awareness campaign for over 70 senior citizens on August 19 to address a reported surge in sophisticated imposter scams targeting elderly residents' life savings. The event, conducted in collaboration with Absa bank, educated seniors on psychological tactics used by fraudsters and covered telephone scams, fraudulent messages, and online phishing. Police emphasized that criminals exploit seniors' politeness and courtesy, and stressed that legitimate banks never request PINs, passwords, or urgent fund transfers over the phone.
insidestory.org.au
· 2026-08-21
Journalist Carlos Barragan investigates Nigerian "Yahoo Boys" scammers after his own mother was defrauded by a man posing as an American soldier named Brian, who manipulated her into purchasing rings and romantic gifts. The book explores how these scammers exploit Western loneliness by creating fake identities on dating apps and social media, targeting isolated and emotionally vulnerable people seeking companionship rather than those seeking financial gain. Barragan's investigation reveals the intersection between widespread poverty in Nigeria and the emotional isolation of Western victims, portraying a morally complex landscape where desperation on both sides fuels the scam operations.
kstp.com
· 2026-08-21
Minnesotans lose approximately $1.5 billion annually to online scams, according to a Consumer Federation of America report cited at a fraud-prevention seminar hosted by eight credit unions in partnership with law enforcement. The event highlighted common scam tactics including romance scams, fake job offers, cryptocurrency pitches, and impersonation schemes that rely on urgency, fear, and trust to manipulate victims. Experts emphasized that people should not rush into decisions when contacted by suspicious offers and encouraged using the Better Business Bureau's Scam Tracker to research potential fraud before responding.
foxcarolina.com
· 2026-08-21
Scammers are impersonating legitimate invitation services like Evite and Paperless Post to phish for victims' email addresses, passwords, and phone numbers during peak event seasons. Once criminals obtain login credentials or verification codes, they can access email accounts, reset other passwords, and spread the scam to the victim's entire contact list. The FTC recommends verifying suspicious invitations through direct contact with the sender and immediately changing passwords and enabling two-factor authentication if credentials were compromised.
finance.yahoo.com
· 2026-08-21
Scammers are operating fraudulent sites like Poison Claude that offer AI tokens at 70-90% discounts by using stolen payment methods, exploiting free trials, and routing user prompts through unauthorized endpoints without proper security controls. These services have attracted hundreds of users and cost legitimate AI companies millions of dollars daily in losses, while also serving users in countries where U.S. AI models are restricted. Users accessing discounted tokens through these gray market resellers face serious legal and security risks, as the underlying transactions are illegal.
commbank.com.au
· 2026-08-21
Scammers impersonate banks to exploit people's emotional stress about money, making victims act before verifying the threat's authenticity. The "callback scam" is a common tactic where scammers send messages asking people to call a number, then use fake bank call center experiences and publicly available information (like the first six digits of card numbers) to establish false credibility before requesting personal information, passwords, or payment transfers. CommBank advises people to always stop, check, and reject unsolicited requests for information or payments, regardless of how legitimate they appear.
globalnation.inquirer.net
· 2026-08-21
The National Bureau of Investigation arrested 12 individuals (one Malaysian national and 11 Filipinos) at a residential location in Parañaque City for operating an online fraud scheme using fake social media profiles. The suspects conducted various scams including romance fraud, financial fraud, intimidation, and extortion, using stolen personal data to defraud victims of large sums of money. The arrests followed intelligence-led operations where NBI agents discovered the suspects actively working from computers and mobile devices, and they face charges under the Data Privacy Act.
ii.co.uk
· 2026-08-21
Investment fraud losses reached £879.8 million in 2025, with over 34,000 people reporting losses averaging £25,612 per victim—a 31% increase from the previous year. Scammers use social media, WhatsApp, deepfake endorsements, and cloned websites to impersonate celebrities, financial experts, and legitimate firms, promoting fake or overpriced investments with promises of quick profits and exclusive opportunities. Victims face additional risk from recovery scams, where fraudsters target them again with offers to recover their lost money.
hoodline.com
· 2026-08-21
Former Fidelity broker Eric James Stone was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for defrauding a 75-year-old client of over $2 million through 613 fraudulent transactions over three years, using fake email accounts and fabricated legal threats to pressure continued payments. Stone, who had been terminated from Fidelity in 2021 for soliciting personal loans from clients, spent the stolen funds on foreign gambling websites, cryptocurrency, travel, and personal debts, moving money through Zelle, PayPal, wire transfers, and Bitcoin wallets. He was ordered to pay $2,037,103 in restitution to his victim.
creators.yahoo.com
· 2026-08-21
A caller impersonating a sergeant from the Adams County Sheriff's Department attempted to defraud the author by claiming a legal matter required attention, but the scam was detected when the caller incorrectly referred to the agency as "Sheriff's Department" instead of "Sheriff's Office." The scammer, identifying himself as "Sgt. Don Davis," was part of a scheme warning potential victims of missed federal jury summons and demanding payment, though the sheriff's office confirmed no such sergeant exists and the agency does not contact people about legal proceedings in that manner.
radioiowa.com
· 2026-08-21
The Better Business Bureau warns Iowa residents who have previously fallen victim to scams to remain vigilant, as scammers often share victim lists and target the same people again with different fraud schemes. Common follow-up tactics include impersonating money recovery services, exploiting victims' shame or attempts to self-remediate. The BBB recommends reporting scams to trusted organizations like the Consumer Protection Division of the Iowa Attorney General's Office to create records and receive protection assistance.
washingtonstand.com
· 2026-08-21
Criminals are increasingly using AI tools to perpetrate fraud at unprecedented scale and profitability, with the FBI reporting over $893 million in AI-related fraud losses in 2025, including romance scams, business email compromise schemes, and voice-cloning extortion. Seniors aged 60 and older filed only 14% of AI-fraud complaints but suffered over a third of total losses ($352 million), making them disproportionately vulnerable to these sophisticated, personalized attacks at mass scale. Criminal networks are using AI to generate convincing profiles, synthetic content, and forged documents while automating fraud campaigns that previously required individual human attention for each victim.
cuinsight.com
· 2026-08-21
Arrowhead Credit Union hosted fraud and scam prevention education sessions at Congresswoman Linda Sánchez's 20th Annual Senior Fair in Rancho Cucamonga, reaching approximately 900 attendees with information on recognizing common scams targeting older adults. According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, seniors ages 60+ reported over $7.7 billion in losses in 2025—a 37% increase from 2024, with the average loss exceeding $38,000 per victim. The presentations covered phishing tactics, impersonation scams, romance scams, and protective strategies including ID protection and digital banking safety.
talkandroid.com
· 2026-08-21
WhatsApp has launched Scam Alert, an AI-powered feature currently in beta that detects fraudulent messages from unknown contacts by analyzing message patterns locally on users' devices without sending content to external servers. The tool targets common scams including impersonation, fake job offers, investment schemes, and romance fraud, alerting only the recipient when suspicious messages are detected. The feature began rolling out in August 2026 and can be toggled off at any time, with users able to report suspected scams to WhatsApp for review if desired.
capetimes.co.za
· 2026-08-21
AI is facilitating 55% of reported cybercrimes across Africa, with cybercrime-related losses more than doubling from USD 192 million in 2024 to USD 484 million in 2025, driven primarily by AI-enabled scams, credential harvesting, and automated social engineering. According to Interpol's African Cyberthreat Assessment Report based on data from 36 African countries, online scams are the most reported cybercrime type, with 72% of surveyed countries reporting scam centers and criminals using AI-generated deepfakes, synthetic identities, and business email compromise schemes to target victims across Africa, Europe, and North America. East Africa has become
wa.gov.au
· 2026-08-20
Scammers are increasingly targeting older Western Australians through gift card fraud using romance scams, impersonation of government agencies and employers, and investment schemes. Victims have lost significant sums including $17,000, $77,000, and $50,000 after being tricked into purchasing gift cards via fake emails, calls, and online relationships. Retailers and government agencies recommend verifying requests in person, avoiding large gift card purchases when prompted by unexpected callers, and reporting suspicious activity to authorities.
au.lifehacker.com
· 2026-08-20
Meta removed 6.8 million WhatsApp accounts associated with cybercrime and digital scams in the second half of 2025, though attacks continue due to low costs and automated execution. Common WhatsApp scams rely on social engineering rather than sophisticated hacking, with the most dangerous being account takeover schemes where attackers trick victims into sharing verification codes, then impersonate them to extort money from their contacts. Users can protect themselves by enabling two-step verification, never sharing verification codes, and verifying urgent money requests through direct phone calls using known contact numbers.
theguardian.com
· 2026-08-20
Thousands of people trafficked into cyber-fraud compounds across Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar have escaped during regional military and police raids, but many remain stranded in Cambodia without passports, money, or means to return home. Survivors face mounting visa overstay fines reaching thousands of dollars, immigration detention, and homelessness, with aid organizations warning of a humanitarian crisis as governments treat escaped trafficking victims as perpetrators rather than victims. Some desperate survivors are reportedly returning to the scam compounds they escaped from due to lack of support and viable options to leave the region.
globalnews.ca
· 2026-08-20
Canadians are losing millions to a cell phone delivery scam where fraudsters impersonate telecom providers like Rogers, with over $17 million in reported losses in the first six months of 2026. A British Columbia resident, Jeannie Moss, fell victim to the scam and now owes Rogers over $4,000 after fraudsters convinced her to return devices and took out a $2,500 loan in her name through the Affirm company. The scammers used personal information including phone numbers and addresses to appear legitimate, sending multiple devices and prepaid shipping labels to trick victims into sending phones to non-Rogers addresses.
kptv.com
· 2026-08-20
Scammers are impersonating FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) employees to target fraud victims a second time through phone calls, emails, fake websites, and deepfake videos, often claiming to have recovered lost funds and requesting payment to release the money. This scheme is particularly damaging because it exploits people who have already been victimized and undermines public trust in the legitimate IC3 reporting tool. The FBI advises victims to access IC3 only through www.ic3.gov directly and to remember that the federal government does not charge fees to recover stolen funds.