Financial fraud targeting individuals and families has become widespread enough that it now regularly comes up in discussions among accounting and financial professionals. At a recent AICPA ENGAGE session for CPAs, four out of five attendees said they had personally worked with at least one client who had been the victim of a financial scam. In half of those cases, the loss exceeded $10,000, and in more than half, none of the money was ever recovered.
These outcomes aren’t the result of carelessness. Scams succeed because they’re designed to create urgency and bypass careful thinking, not because victims fail to pay attention. A common approach involves an unexpected call, text, or email describing a loved one in sudden legal or medical trouble, paired with pressure to send money immediately. Advances in technology have also made it easier for scammers to impersonate a familiar voice convincingly, which adds to the pressure to act quickly rather than verify.
Why This Matters for Everyone, Not Just Older Adults
Fraud prevention is often discussed in the context of older adults, and research does show a connection: studies from Wayne State University’s Institute of Gerontology found that high levels of loneliness or depression are linked to a more than threefold increase in vulnerability to scams. But the underlying tactics — urgency, impersonation, and pressure to act before verifying — are effective against people of any age. The same safeguards apply broadly.
Practical Steps That Reduce Risk
A small number of straightforward habits can meaningfully lower exposure to these schemes.
Establish a verification question with close family members. Agreeing in advance on a question only a real family member could answer, such as the name of a childhood pet or a sibling’s middle name, provides a quick way to confirm identity during an unexpected, high-pressure call. A convincing voice can be faked; a private, agreed-upon answer is much harder to guess.
Identify a trusted contact. This is a person, not necessarily a legal decision-maker, who can be contacted if financial activity looks unusual or communication becomes difficult. Having this contact established ahead of time gives family members and advisors someone to loop in if something appears off.
Verify before transferring funds. Any request to move money, regardless of who it appears to come from, should be confirmed through a phone call to a number already on file before any transfer takes place. This single habit is one of the most effective ways to interrupt a scam in progress.
Maintain regular social and family contact. Given the documented link between isolation and fraud vulnerability, regular check-ins are a meaningful layer of protection in addition to their other benefits.
What to Do If Funds Have Already Been Sent
If money has already been transferred to a scammer, speed is critical. The recommended immediate steps are to contact the financial institution directly and request a recall of the funds, and to file a complaint at IC3.gov, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. A complaint filed there can initiate the Financial Fraud Kill Chain, a rapid-response process between the FBI and financial institutions intended to freeze stolen funds before they are moved beyond recovery.
Financial fraud targeting individuals and families has become widespread enough that it now regularly comes up in discussions among accounting and financial professionals. At a recent AICPA ENGAGE session for CPAs, four out of five attendees said they had personally worked with at least one client who had been the victim of a financial scam. In half of those cases, the loss exceeded $10,000, and in more than half, none of the money was ever recovered.
These outcomes aren’t the result of carelessness. Scams succeed because they’re designed to create urgency and bypass careful thinking, not because victims fail to pay attention. A common approach involves an unexpected call, text, or email describing a loved one in sudden legal or medical trouble, paired with pressure to send money immediately. Advances in technology have also made it easier for scammers to impersonate a familiar voice convincingly, which adds to the pressure to act quickly rather than verify.
Why This Matters for Everyone, Not Just Older Adults
Fraud prevention is often discussed in the context of older adults, and research does show a connection: studies from Wayne State University’s Institute of Gerontology found that high levels of loneliness or depression are linked to a more than threefold increase in vulnerability to scams. But the underlying tactics — urgency, impersonation, and pressure to act before verifying — are effective against people of any age. The same safeguards apply broadly.
Practical Steps That Reduce Risk
A small number of straightforward habits can meaningfully lower exposure to these schemes.
Establish a verification question with close family members. Agreeing in advance on a question only a real family member could answer, such as the name of a childhood pet or a sibling’s middle name, provides a quick way to confirm identity during an unexpected, high-pressure call. A convincing voice can be faked; a private, agreed-upon answer is much harder to guess.
Identify a trusted contact. This is a person, not necessarily a legal decision-maker, who can be contacted if financial activity looks unusual or communication becomes difficult. Having this contact established ahead of time gives family members and advisors someone to loop in if something appears off.
Verify before transferring funds. Any request to move money, regardless of who it appears to come from, should be confirmed through a phone call to a number already on file before any transfer takes place. This single habit is one of the most effective ways to interrupt a scam in progress.
Maintain regular social and family contact. Given the documented link between isolation and fraud vulnerability, regular check-ins are a meaningful layer of protection in addition to their other benefits.
What to Do If Funds Have Already Been Sent
If money has already been transferred to a scammer, speed is critical. The recommended immediate steps are to contact the financial institution directly and request a recall of the funds, and to file a complaint at IC3.gov, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. A complaint filed there can initiate the Financial Fraud Kill Chain, a rapid-response process between the FBI and financial institutions intended to freeze stolen funds before they are moved beyond recovery.
Summary
Financial scams are widespread, evolving, and effective against careful, well-informed people. A limited set of proactive habits — a verification question, a designated trusted contact, and a consistent practice of confirming any transfer request by phone — meaningfully reduces the risk for individuals and families alike. Acting quickly if a loss does occur can also materially improve the odds of recovering funds.
Financial scams are widespread, evolving, and effective against careful, well-informed people. A limited set of proactive habits — a verification question, a designated trusted contact, and a consistent practice of confirming any transfer request by phone — meaningfully reduces the risk for individuals and families alike. Acting quickly if a loss does occur can also materially improve the odds of recovering funds.
