(BrightPress.org) – The scammers are winning. Overseas criminals are stealing billions from Americans every year. This crime wave is projected to worsen as the population ages and technology like AI makes fraud easier to commit and harder to trace.
Internet and phone scams have exploded, overwhelming law enforcement. Kathy Stokes, director of AARP’s Fraud Watch Network, says police and prosecutors catch and convict few perpetrators. Victims rarely get their money back. Older people often lose life savings to scams like romance scams, grandparent scams, and technical support fraud.
A recent case in Ohio highlights the challenge. An 81-year-old man named William Brock, fatally shot a woman, wrongly thinking she was part of a plot to extract $12,000 in supposed bond money for a relative. She was also a victim. Targeted as an Uber diver sent to pick up a package. The scammer remains at large.
Brock said he feared for his life and pleaded not guilty. Cases like this show how overwhelmed law enforcement is. Brady Finta, a former FBI agent, says the sheer volume of fraud is almost impossible to manage.
Investigating these scams is tough, especially those originating overseas. Stolen funds are quickly converted into cryptocurrency or moved to foreign bank accounts. Some police departments don’t prioritize financial scams, leaving victims feeling discouraged. Paul Greenwood, who prosecuted elder financial abuse in San Diego, says some law enforcement mistakenly think victims willingly send money, not realizing they’ve been defrauded.
Federal prosecutors typically step in only if the fraud reaches a certain amount. Victims often get calls from convincing scammers who know personal details, urging them to withdraw and deliver large sums of money.
Americans over 60 lose $28.3 billion annually to scams, with only 1 in 10 reported to authorities. It’s not just seniors. Financial columnist Charlotte Cowles, 39, recently shared how she lost $50,000 to scammers posing as Amazon, the FTC, and the CIA. They convinced her she was under suspicion and in danger, leading her to hand over the cash. Now, she’s left in shock and embarrassment.
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