June 15, 2026, was designated World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. One of the ways seniors are victimized is through financial scams. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), “in 2025, [elderly] people reported losing about $16 billion to scams, compared to $12.8 billion the previous year. And because not everyone who experiences a scam reports it, this likely represents only a fraction of the actual amount lost.”
Imposter scams are one of the most common ways seniors become financial fraud victims. An imposter pretends to be someone else, such as a government, bank, or law enforcement, friend or family member and contacts the victim through phone, text, email, or other messaging to obtain information to further financial fraud. Threat actors commonly pose as an Internal Revenue Service agents and call the victim to let them know they are behind on their taxes and if they don’t pay up immediately, something dreadful will happen. They use scare tactics to quickly obtain credit card information, cash, or personal information from the victim.
Awareness of imposter scams can prevent you from becoming a victim. Here are some tips to help you avoid them.