Consumers overall lost $10 billion to scams in 2023, a record, according to the FTC.

Summary

Reports of older adults losing over $100,000 to scams have tripled since 2020, per the FTC, with 4,600 cases in 2023 compared to 1,300 in 2020.

Older Americans lost $1.9 billion to fraud last year, with the actual losses likely closer to $62 billion due to underreporting.

Common scams include romance, investment (notably fake cryptocurrency), and imposter scams. The psychological and financial toll is severe, especially for retirees.

Experts urge vigilance against red flags like urgent demands, social isolation tactics, and unusual payment requests like gift cards or cryptocurrency.

  • Nougat@fedia.io
    20·
    5 days ago

    Long ago, I developed these skills:

    • If it’s not a physical fucking thing, and you can get it by paying money, you can probably get something close to it for free. Go look for that.
    • If it’s a service, and someone is offering to sell it to you without you having asked, it’s either a scam, or you don’t need it anyway.

    I’m not saying I’m necessarily immune to these scams, I don’t know what getting older is going to do to my brain. But I can say that I’m vaccinated against them.

    • Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      7·
      4 days ago

      I’ve watched like a 500+ hours of Kitboga while working from home.

      I AM immune to these scams hahaha

      • Frozengyro@lemmy.world
        11·
        4 days ago

        They come up with new and more complicated shit all the time. First step to avoiding them, is knowing you are not immune and being wary of them.