TULSA, Okla. — Scammers are stealing life savings from older Americans at an alarming rate, with reports of losses over $10,000 quadrupling since 2020, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Even more disturbing, losses exceeding $100,000 have jumped eight times higher—from $55 million to $445 million.
These scammers use three main tactics to trick victims:
- claiming someone else is using their bank account or online shopping accounts
- pretending their information is being used in crimes like drug smuggling
- sending fake computer security alerts claiming accounts have been hacked.
Some scammers even impersonate Federal Trade Commission officials or other government agents. The goal is to convince victims to transfer money or hand over cash to "protect it."
Government agencies never ask people to move money or hand it over to be protected.
A clear sign of a scam is when someone calls or texts unexpectedly claiming to be a government agent or your bank asking for money or account access.
If you receive one of these calls:
- hang up immediately and block the number
- don't click on any links in text messages
- delete text messages and report it as junk then block the sender's number.
When callers or text messages claim to be from your bank, hang up and call back using a number you know belongs to your bank, or visit your bank in person to inquire whether they're investigating any suspicious activity with your accounts.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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