Older Adults Reported Three Billion Dollars in Fraud Losses
Adults aged 60 and over reported losing about $3 billion to fraud in 2025, up from about $600 million in 2020, with investment scams at more than $1 billion, the FTC said.
Older adults fraud losses reached about $3 billion in 2025, according to a report from the Federal Trade Commission released on October 19, 2026. The report, titled Protecting Older Consumers 2025-2026, draws on reports filed by consumers with the agency’s Consumer Sentinel Network. Adults aged 60 and over reported losing about $3 billion in 2025, up from about $2.4 billion in 2024 and about $600 million in 2020. That fivefold rise over five years was driven largely by a growing number of very large individual losses, often above $100,000. About 123,000 reports from people aged 60 and over stated both an age and a monetary loss, out of about 469,597 reports from that age group in total.
Investment scams produced the largest share of reported losses among older adults, at more than $1 billion in 2025, a rise of 42 percent from 2024. Government impersonation scams followed at about $448 million, with business impersonation scams at about $422 million. Scams first encountered through social media generated about $750 million in reported losses from older adults in 2025. Older adults reported losing money less often than younger adults, but they lost more per incident when they did lose money. For people aged 80 and over, the median reported loss was $2,000 in 2025, up 21 percent from 2024. Reports of losses above $100,000 made up about 6 percent of older adults’ loss reports, yet they accounted for about 70 percent of the total reported losses for that age group.
Protecting against older adults fraud
Older adults were more likely than younger adults to report losing money to tech support scams, prize and sweepstakes scams, romance scams, government impersonation scams, and scams that impersonate a friend or family member. Online shopping fraud produced the largest number of older adults’ reports involving a loss, even though investment scams produced the largest total dollar loss. Families can help by talking openly about common scripts, by agreeing to pause before sending money, and by checking any urgent request through a separate, trusted contact. Anyone who loses money should stop sending funds, contact the bank at once, and report the incident at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The National Elder Fraud Hotline can be reached at 833-FRAUD-11.
Source: PYMNTS
