New Tools Give Older Adults a ‘Call Before You Click’ Resource to Avoid Fraud
As scams targeting older adults continue to rise, retirees are increasingly at risk of losing significant money through frauds such as investment schemes, tech support scams, and impersonation scams. The Federal Trade Commission recently reported that older Americans lost over $2.4 billion to fraud in 2024, with social media as the most common method of contact.
Scammers often pose as trusted professionals or use fabricated technologies to appear legitimate, exploiting the lack of real-time verification. Retirees, who may be less familiar with online scams or pressured to act quickly, can be especially vulnerable to these tactics.
Simple precautions can make a difference, such as pausing before acting on unexpected calls or links, verifying the source through official channels, avoiding sharing personal or financial information with unknown contacts, and staying informed about common scam tactics. Services like VerifyDial provide a neutral resource for older adults to check suspicious communications before taking action, reducing the risk of financial loss and building confidence in online and phone interactions.
Key Findings from the Report Include:
- Older adults are increasingly targeted: In 2024, seniors (age 60+) reported losses exceeding $2.4 billion to various scams, with many individual losses exceeding $100,000.
- High-risk channels: Consumers of all ages report social media as the most common method of contact for investment scams, with messaging apps and phone calls also widely used.
- Common scam tactics: Fraudsters used impersonation, fake investment platforms, fabricated AI technology, and “too-good-to-be-true” offers to lure victims.
- Significant financial impact: Older adults reported larger median losses than younger adults, highlighting their heightened vulnerability to high-dollar schemes.
- Traditional verification methods fall short: Caller ID, basic account verification, and similar tools are often insufficient to detect sophisticated scams.
- Behavioral vulnerabilities: Seniors may be more trusting or feel social pressure, making them targets for persuasive social engineering attacks.
- Preventive solutions are critical: Tools like VerifyDial provide a neutral, calm resource for retirees to pause and confirm the legitimacy of calls, links, or payment requests. Using such services can reduce the risk of falling victim to fraud and help retirees maintain control over their finances.
VerifyDial was founded by Brian Ley after a close family member nearly lost $250,000 of her life savings to a romance scam. Witnessing how quickly scammers can exploit trust motivated him to create a solution that helps people verify suspicious requests before taking action. Recognizing that the U.S. lacks a national short-code system for scam prevention while the U.K. has a dedicated “159” hotline, Brian launched VerifyDial, a universal “Call Before You Click” service that provides a neutral and reliable resource for verifying calls, links, or payment requests. VerifyDial empowers users to pause and confirm legitimacy, reducing the risk of financial loss. The service helps individuals stay safe from fraud while promoting trust and confidence in online and phone interactions.
