Elderly Fraud Totaled $3.4 Billion in Losses in 2023

In October 2022, I wrote an article titled FBI Report: Seniors Lost $1.7 Billion to Identity Theft and Fraud in 2021 (linkedin.com)

Fast forward to today where “elder fraud complaints to the?FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (or IC3)?increased by 14% in 2023, and associated losses increased by about 11%, according to?IC3’s 2023 Elder Fraud Report,” which was just released on April 30. ?

The increase in financial losses relating to identity theft and fraud targeting seniors from 2021 to 2023 doubled where total losses for the elderly totaled $3.4 billion in 2023.

However, it’s not just the elderly as the age range of identity theft and fraud complaints include the following:

• Over 60 years of age: ?101,068 complaints totaling $3.4 billion.
• 50-59 years old: ?65,924 complaints totaling $1.6 billion.
• 40-49 years old: ?84,052 complaints totaling $1.5 billion.
• 30-39 years old:? 88,138 complaints totaling $1.1 billion.
• 20-29 years old:? 62,410 complaints totaling $360 million.
• Under 20 years of age: 18,174 complaints totaling $40 million.

The annual FBI Elder Fraud Report delivers statistics and analytics on elder fraud incidents with a focus on identity theft and fraud that targets seniors. The IC3, which is the primary resource / hub for reporting cybercrime, has two objectives including (1) protecting cyberspace and (2) helping consumers and businesses protect their online security.

The FBI encourages victims of identity theft and fraud to file a complaint on the IC3 website. The FBI also encourages consumers and businesses to stay up to date on the latest identity theft and fraud trends, threats, and scams to help protect yourself, family, and your place of work.

Here are five key takeaways from?the 2023 report:?

• Elder fraud is an expensive crime.?Scams targeting individuals aged 60 and older caused over $3.4 billion in losses in 2023—an increase of approximately 11% from the year prior. The average victim of elder fraud lost $33,915 due to these crimes in 2023.?
• Older Americans seem to be disproportionately impacted by scams and fraud.?Over 101,000 victims aged 60 and over reported this kind of crime to IC3 in 2023. On the flip side, victims under the age of 20 years old seemed to be the least-impacted demographic, with about 18,000 victims in this demographic reporting suspected scams or frauds to IC3 last year.?
• Tech support scams were the most widely reported kind of elder fraud in 2023.?Nearly 18,000 victims aged 60 and over reported such scams to IC3. Personal data breaches, confidence and romance scams, non-payment or non-delivery scams, and investment scams rounded out the top five most common types of elder fraud reported to IC3?last year. ?
• Investment scams were the costliest kind of elder fraud in 2023.?These schemes cost victims more than $1.2 billion in losses last year. And tech support scams, business email compromise scams, confidence and romance scams, government impersonation scams, and personal data breaches all respectively cost victims hundreds of millions of dollars in 2023.?
• Scammers are coming for people’s cryptocurrency.?More than 12,000 victims aged 60 and over indicated that cryptocurrency was “a medium or tool used to facilitate” the scam or fraud that targeted them when reporting it to IC3.?

To conclude, John Iannarelli – a retired FBI Special Agent, keynote speaker, author, consultant, and cybersecurity expert – said that if you or someone you know is a victim of identity theft and/or fraud, contact your local?FBI field office?or?submit a tip online at Electronic Tip Form | FBI.

If the suspected identity theft and/or fraud was internet related, Iannarelli said that you can also file a complaint with the FBI’s?Internet Crime Complaint Center at Internet Crime Complaint Center(IC3) | Home Page.