Phantom Hacker Scams Have Caused Significant Losses for Older Individuals

The U.S. government is reissuing warnings of a phantom hacker scam that has resulted in a sharp uptick in older adults losing significant amounts of money. From 2020 to 2024, the number of older adults who reported losing $10,000 or more to these scams increased more than fourfold, while the number of reports increased almost sevenfold. While these scams can affect anyone of any age, older individuals have reported harrowing losses to these crimes, with some losing their life savings.

Phantom hacker scams center around a made-up threat. There may be a pop-up alert on the victim’s computer, a phone call, or a text message that the victim has been hacked and needs to contact tech support. In other cases, scammers may claim to be flagging suspicious activity on an online account, like banking. The criminals then push for their target to download a software program that gives the fraudsters remote access to the victim’s device, with a fake promise to help resolve the original phony threat.

Following this initial outreach, scammers then typically impersonate the victim’s bank, using information they gained from the remote access. They often claim that the victim’s accounts and devices have been compromised and that the victim must transfer their money to a “safe” account elsewhere, like the Federal Reserve or another agency . The criminals provide instructions for the victim to transfer their money with a wire transfer, cash, or cryptocurrency, with the destination being an account that the scammers control. They may tell their target not to inform others about the transfer.

The fraudsters may also impersonate federal employees at the Federal Reserve or a law enforcement agency, reinforcing the story that the victim’s funds are unsafe and must be transferred. Scammers may send an email or letter on letterhead attempting to replicate those used in official U.S. communications.

To better protect yourself from these scams, keep the following tips in mind:

• Do not move money to “protect it.” In many cases, if there is a true threat, the safest place for your money is its usual FDIC-insured bank account.
• Verify claims on your own. Hang up or stop messaging the person contacting you and check with your bank directly using a phone number you know is legitimate.
• Do not download software at the request of remote individuals. If you download software, especially one that gives others access to your device, your personal information and/or money is much more likely to become compromised. It can also be very difficult to undo the harm caused by these intrusions.
• The U.S. government will not ask you to transfer money to foreign accounts, cryptocurrency, or gift cards.

Reporting Scams

If you suspect you’ve encountered a scam:

• File a complaint at Fraud.org: We will share your complaint with our network of consumer protection agencies and law enforcement partners.
• Report it to the FBI: Use the IC3.gov website to report directly to the agency.
• Inform the FTC: File a complaint at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.