Savvy online scammers often target older adults because they have the most assets. Healthy retirement accounts and paid-off houses attract con artists like picnics attract ants.
Complaints filed on behalf of people aged 60 and older rose 46% from 2023 to 2024, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. That age group lost more than $4.8 billion to internet-related crimes last year, the FBI reported.
Online scams are difficult to prosecute, so it was heartening that a Keller couple recently pleaded guilty for their role in a romance con that targeted older Americans. Based on court documents, the suspects were apparently intermediaries who accepted checks, money orders and electronic payments, subtracted a fee and then transferred the remaining funds to co-conspirators in Ghana.
Steve Benton, a financial exploitation expert with The Senior Source in Dallas, gives dozens of talks annually trying to alert potential victims — and potential watch dogs — about scams. Benton said it’s common for suspects and victims to communicate only by text. The interactions often start on Facebook, maybe via a hacked account or with a seemingly innocuous, apparently misdirected message. The victim responds, more messages are exchanged, and the scammer suggests shifting to an encrypted messaging app, such as WhatsApp.
Eventually, the con artist asks for money.
“It’s a long game,” Benton said, “but once it’s in place, the money just starts flowing.”
In recent years, criminals have grafted cryptocurrency investment fraud onto online relationship scams. The result is known as “pig butchering” because swindlers fatten up their targets before going in for the kill. It’s a particularly demoralizing swindle because it has a more elaborate setup and exploits victims’ inexperience with digital currencies and their greed or need for money.
The con starts by establishing a trusting relationship — not always a romantic one — between dupe and criminal. The fraudster shares photos of luxury cars or an impressive mansion they claim to own. Investing in crypto has made them rich, they explain, and then they offer to help their victim create an account and start investing. The account’s value appears to soar, which encourages victims to invest more. But when they try to withdraw their funds, they can’t. It’s all been a mirage.
The subtle cognitive declines that can come with age make some older people more vulnerable to scams, but we’re all at risk. Advances in artificial intelligence, including voice and video cloning, make it easier for fraudsters to fool any of us. We all need to protect one another.
Adult children need to probe — diplomatically — their elders’ financial situations. Neighbors and church friends, manicurists and barbers, bank tellers and physical therapists need to watch for out-of-character spending or investment chatter. Ask questions. Try to intervene. Like it or not, we’re all on the cybersecurity help desk now.
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