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Elder fraud in the US: $7.7 billion lost and how to protect parents

Americans over 60 lost $7.7 billion to fraud in 2025, the FBI says. How tech support and government impersonation scams work and how families can help.

2026-10-19

Americans aged 60 and over reported losing $7.75 billion to fraud in 2025, according to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). That is about 59% more than the year before, and it is only what victims chose to report. The Federal Trade Commission, using a different methodology, estimates that the true cost of fraud to older adults in 2025 could be as high as $119.5 billion.

Two scam families stand out for how specifically they target older people: fake tech support and government impersonation. Both rely on fear, urgency and isolation, and both are preventable with a few family routines.

The numbers

Indicator (FBI IC3, 2025, victims 60+)	Figure
Complaints	201,266
Reported losses	$7.75 billion
Average loss per complainant	$38,500
Complainants who lost more than $100,000	12,444
Tech/customer support scam losses	about $1.04 billion (about 21,333 complaints)
Government impersonation losses	$413 million (8,628 complaints)
Crypto ATM/kiosk losses	$257 million (6,188 complaints)

The concentration is striking. Across all ages, the FBI recorded $798 million in government impersonation losses in 2025, nearly double 2024. People over 60 filed about a quarter of those complaints but accounted for more than half of the money lost, according to an analysis of IC3 data by All About Cookies. Their average loss in this category was almost $48,000.

The FTC's October 2026 report to Congress, based on its own Consumer Sentinel data, shows the same trend: reported fraud losses among older adults rose roughly fivefold between 2020 and 2025, from about $600 million to about $3 billion.

How tech support scams work

The hook: a pop-up that freezes the screen with a fake virus warning and a phone number, or a call from someone claiming to be from a well-known software company or bank.
Remote access: the "technician" asks the victim to install a remote-control tool, then "finds" a problem.
The escalation: in many cases the story shifts to the victim's bank account being "hacked". A second actor, posing as the bank or a government agency, tells the victim to move savings to a "safe" account, buy gold, withdraw cash for a courier or deposit cash in a crypto ATM.

That escalation is why tech support losses can be so large. Among Financial Fraud Kill Chain cases involving victims over 60, tech support and account takeover was the most common crime type in 2025, according to the IC3.

How government impersonation works

The caller claims to be from the Social Security Administration, the IRS, the FTC, the FBI or a local sheriff. The script usually involves a crime linked to the victim's identity, an arrest warrant or frozen benefits. The "solution" is always to pay, move money or hand over cash.

The FTC is blunt about its own name being misused: it says it will never demand money, make threats, tell you to transfer money or promise a prize. The FTC also notes that scammers impersonating it have told victims to give cash to couriers or mail it.

Why older adults lose more

Older adults often have savings, home equity and retirement accounts within reach. Scammers also keep them on the phone for hours or days. As one FBI special agent put it, the longer scammers talk to victims, the more successful the scam becomes.

How families can protect parents

Most protections are about habits, not technology:

Agree on a rule: no government agency, bank or tech company will ask you to move money, buy gold or gift cards, or withdraw cash for pickup. Anyone who does is a scammer.
Hang up and call back using a number from a bank card, statement or official website, never one provided by the caller or a pop-up.
Never allow remote access to a computer or phone after an unsolicited call or pop-up. Turning the device off and restarting it is fine.
Create a family check-in: encourage parents to call a trusted relative before any unusual payment. Scammers often insist on secrecy; that demand is itself a red flag.
Use bank tools: ask the bank about a trusted contact person on the account, transaction alerts and limits on large transfers.
Watch for crypto ATMs: a parent visiting a bitcoin kiosk for the first time, under instructions from someone on the phone, is a classic sign of fraud.

If it already happened

Call the bank immediately and ask for a recall of the transfer. In 2025, the IC3 Recovery Asset Team froze about $33 million in cases involving victims over 60.
File a report at ic3.gov and at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Get help: the FTC says older adults with significant losses can be referred to the Justice Department's National Elder Fraud Hotline.
Revoke access: uninstall remote-access tools, change passwords and enable two-factor authentication.
Expect a second wave: victims are often targeted again by fake "recovery" services. Treat any such offer as a scam.