Bank or business scams: In this case, you get a call from someone posing as a bank employee alerting you to an urgent issue with your account. These fraudsters then try to extract your banking information, such as passwords and PINs, which they then use to access your account.
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Anyone can fall victim to fraud but the elderly may be particularly vulnerable.
In 2024, Americans aged 60-plus reported the highest number of reported incidents (147,127) and cumulative losses ($4.8 billion) to internet fraud, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Report 2024.
That’s nearly two times the losses suffered by the next highest-impacted age group (50 to 59) and more than twice as many incidents as reported by those aged 20 to 29.
Note these stats are associated with internet crimes, which include more than imposter scams.
The FTC recommends that you “be suspicious of any call from a government agency asking for money or information.” You can’t necessarily trust caller ID anymore since it can be faked.
An easy warning sign that you’re talking to an imposter? They want you to pay via gift cards, wire transfer or cryptocurrency.
While scammers often create a sense of urgency to pressure you into handing over your hard-earned cash, it’s best to hang up the phone or ignore suspicious emails and then contact the person, agency or company that got in touch with you by looking up a publicly available phone number — not using one they gave you.
If you’ve been scammed, immediately report it to your local police department and the FTC. If you were the victim of an internet crime, you can also contact the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
If you suffered a loss, the FTC recommends contacting your bank, credit card company, gift card company or wire transfer company.
If you think the fraudsters may have remote access to your computer, run a scan with your computer’s security software (update it if necessary), which may help identify anything problematic.
Any passwords you’ve shared or think may be compromised should be changed immediately. It’s recommended you have a unique password for each account.
If you’ve given scammers access to other personal information, like your Social Security number, you could wind up the victim of identity theft. Visit IdentityTheft.gov to learn about next steps to take.
With advances in technology like artificial intelligence, imposters are getting much better at impersonating others. Your defense begins with educating yourself and maintaining a healthy level of suspicion whenever you’re unexpectedly contacted.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
