Nation’s Top 10 Frauds vs. Elders per the Senate Committee of Aging
The Senate Special Committee on Aging has released a new publication that updates us on frauds vs. elders. The intro to Fighting Fraud:Senate Aging Committee Identifies Top 10 Scams Targeting Our Nation’s Seniors explains
,It is estimated that older Americans lose a staggering $2.9 billion a year to an ever-growing array of financial exploitation schemes and scams. They are being targeted by criminals who want to rob them of their hard-earned retirement savings. They are being exploited by strangers over the telephone, through the mail, and online. Worse yet, far too many seniors may also be targeted by family members or by other people who they trust. The U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging is committed to protecting older Americans against fraud and to bringing greater awareness of this pervasive problem. The Committee maintains a toll-free Fraud Hotline: 1-855-303-9470. By serving as a resource for seniors and others affected by scams, the Hotline has helped increase reporting and awareness of consumer fraud. Additionally, Committee staff and investigators who operate the Fraud Hotline can provide callers with important information to help reduce the likelihood that they will become a victim.Over the past year, more than 1,300 individuals all across the country contacted the Fraud Hotline. Since the Fraud Hotline’s inception in 2013, more than 9,500 individuals from all 50 states have contacted the Committee’s Fraud Hotline to report a possible scam. The Committee would like to thank the many consumer advocacy organizations, community centers, and local law enforcement officials that have provided invaluable assistance by encouraging consumers to call the Fraud Hotline to document scams. We look forward to building upon our successful efforts to investigate and stop scams aimed our nation’s seniors, and to ensure that federal agencies are aggressively pursuing the criminals who commit these frauds.
I know you can’t wait to learn which are the top 10 scams. Here you go!
Top 10 Most-Reported Scam sFrom January 1, 2019, through December 31, 2019, the Senate Aging Committee’s Fraud Hotline received a total of 1,341 complaints from residents all across the country. Calls pertaining to the top 10 scams featured in this report account for more than 70 percent of the complaints.
Rank Type of Scam # of Complaints
1 Social Security Impersonation Scam 371
2 Robocalls / Unsolicited Phone Calls 123
3 Sweepstakes Scam/Jamaican Lottery Scam 107
4 Romance Scams 99
5 Computer Tech Support Scams 93
6 Grandparent Scams 51
7 IRS Impersonation Scam 34
8 Identity Theft 27
9 Debt Scams 21
10 Elder Financial Abuse18
The full report is available here.