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Americans over 60 just had their worst year ever at the hands of scammers. In 2025 they lost a record $7.75 billion — a stunning 59% jump in a single year — across more than 201,000 complaints to the FBI, or about $38,500 stolen from every victim who reported (1).
I’ve spent more than 35 years covering money, and I’ve watched these cons evolve from clumsy mailbox schemes into slick operations that can clone your grandchild’s voice.
Here’s how I protect myself and the people I love — because this is the fastest-growing threat to your retirement that nobody’s insuring you against.
Washington is finally paying attention. In June, the House voted 414-2 to let banks put a temporary hold on suspicious transactions by older customers — a rare bit of bipartisan common sense now waiting on the Senate (2). But a law that might pass won’t help you this afternoon.
The tactics work because they’re relentless. Investment and crypto scams alone drained $3.52 billion from seniors last year, and fake tech-support and government callers took hundreds of millions more (1). This isn’t only a “grandma” problem, either — internet crime cost Americans of all ages $20.9 billion in 2025 (3).
So here are the seven scams doing the most damage right now, and exactly how I’d shut each one down — starting with the one stealing the most.
1. The fake investment ‘platform’
This is where the real money vanishes. Seniors lost $3.52 billion to investment and crypto scams last year — nearly half the total (1). It usually starts small: a friendly message, a “can’t-miss” trading site, a screen showing your money growing. Then you try to withdraw, and it’s gone.
The tell is always the same. Real investments don’t find you through a DM or a text, and no legitimate platform needs you to buy gift cards or send crypto. We’ve unpacked how these crypto and “cold call” cons actually work if you want the full playbook.
Here’s my rule: before you move a dollar into anything someone pitched you online, run it past a trusted friend or relative. Even better, find an expert who’s paid to be on your side. For example, a fiduciary advisor is legally required to put your interests first, and a five-minute gut-check can save your life’s savings.
If you don’t where to find help, check out SmartAsset. They match you with up to three vetted fiduciary advisors near you. Of course, they can also help you with investment advice, tax strategies, and other things, like when to take Social Security.
This is a great time to get a second set of expert eyes. Got $100K or more invested? Get matched free in minutes
2. The tech-support pop-up
That alarming pop-up screaming that your computer’s infected, with a phone number to call? It’s fake — here’s why you just hang up — and it cost seniors $1.04 billion last year (1).
The person who answers will “fix” your machine, then talk you into buying gift cards or handing over remote access to your bank.
No real company — not Microsoft, not Apple, not anybody — will ever cold-call you or freeze your screen with a number to dial. Close the browser. If it won’t close, shut the machine off and restart. That’s the whole defense.
3. The government impersonator
The call sounds official: the Social Security Administration, the IRS, Medicare. Your number’s been “suspended,” there’s a “warrant,” you owe money now. It’s a script, built to make you panic and pay before you think.
Real agencies don’t call out of the blue demanding payment in gift cards, wire transfers or crypto, and they never threaten arrest over the phone. When in doubt, hang up and call the agency back using the number on your card or statement — never the one they gave you.
Here’s another place to get a free second opinion: The AARP Fraud Watch Network runs a free helpline that can tell you in minutes whether a call matches a known scam.
While you’re at it, join AARP. Membership runs as low as $15 for your first year with auto-renewal — less than a scammer takes in a heartbeat. It’s worth a look.
4. The ‘grandchild in trouble’ call — now with AI
This is the one that’s really scary. Scammers can now clone a voice from a few seconds of audio, so the panicked grandchild begging for bail money can sound exactly like your grandchild. AI-driven fraud complaints already top $350 million (1).
The fix is refreshingly low-tech: agree on a family password now. If a “relative” calls in a crisis and can’t say it the password, hang up and call the real person back. A machine can fake a voice — it can’t fake a secret only your family knows.
Quick aside — most internet financial advice comes from people who weren’t alive during the last recession. I’ve been writing about money for more than 35 years. Want rock-solid advice? Sign up for the free Money Talks Newsletter. Takes 10 seconds. No fluff. No spam.
5. The romance scam
This one’s cruel because it steals your heart before your money — $584 million from seniors last year (1). The new “partner” is attentive, always traveling or deployed, and eventually there’s an emergency only cash can solve.
The rule that never fails: anyone you’ve never met in person who asks you for money is a scammer. Full stop. Not a soulmate with bad luck — a thief with a good script, and the warning signs are remarkably consistent.
6. Your leaked data is the ammunition
Here’s what makes all of this easier for the crooks: your information is probably already out there. After years of mega-breaches, your Social Security number, passwords or card details may be circulating right now — and most people find out only when the damage starts.
The first move is free: freeze your credit at all three bureaus, so no one can open new accounts in your name. It costs nothing and stops the most common scams cold.
For what a freeze can’t catch, monitoring fills the gap. Check out a company like Coveron — from Nord Security, the maker of NordVPN. They watch the dark web and your credit around the clock and alerts you with clear steps when something turns up.
If a thief strikes anyway, Coveron’s identity-theft insurance covers up to $1 million in eligible recovery costs. You can start monitoring today.
7. The ‘we can get your money back’ scam
Once you’ve been hit, your name lands on a “sucker list,” and a second scammer calls posing as a fund-recovery service, a lawyer, even a government agency — promising, for a fee, to get your stolen money back.
They won’t. Recovery scams took another $540 million last year (1).
No legitimate agency charges an upfront fee to recover stolen funds. If you’ve been scammed once, report it to the FBI and your bank — and treat anyone promising a refund on that payment as scam number two.
The bottom line
Here’s what 35 years of watching this has taught me: scammers don’t win by being brilliant. They win by being fast, and by catching good people at a bad moment — lonely, rushed, or scared.
So slow everything down. No real bank, agency or grandchild needs a decision in the next five minutes. The pause you take to hang up and call back, to ask for the family password, to run it past someone on your side — that pause is the whole game.
Print this article out. Hand it to the person you love who’d be too embarrassed to admit they weren’t sure. A little suspicion isn’t rude at these ages. It’s how you keep everything you worked for.
Sources
1. HousingWire; 2. U.S. House Committee on Financial Services; 3. AARP
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