FBI Warns of Phantom Hacker Scams Targeting Elderly

The FBI has issued a public service announcement highlighting a significant increase in ‘phantom hacker’ scams that specifically target senior citizens across the United States. These scams have evolved from general tech support scams and now involve imposters assuming various roles, such as tech support, financial institution representatives, and government officials, to gain the trust of victims and identify lucrative accounts to target. Unfortunately, victims often suffer devastating losses, including their entire banking, savings, retirement, or investment accounts, under the guise of protecting their assets.

Scammers involved in these schemes pose as bank representatives and contact unsuspecting victims, falsely claiming that their accounts have been compromised by hackers. They employ tactics to convince targets to grant access to their banking accounts, assessing whether the victims possess significant funds that make them valuable targets. If the victims’ account balance meets the scammers’ criteria, they receive instructions to await a call from their bank, which is actually another scammer involved in the scheme. The victims are then advised to transfer their funds to a supposedly secure account controlled by the fraudsters.

In cases where targets resist manipulation, a third contact is made by an imposter posing as a U.S. government representative. This final attempt aims to persuade victims to safeguard their finances by moving their funds to a so-called ‘safe’ account. These scams have resulted in substantial financial losses, with nearly 19,000 complaints related to tech support scams submitted to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) between January and June 2023, amounting to estimated victim losses exceeding $542 million.

Senior citizens are particularly vulnerable, accounting for almost 50% of the victims reported to IC3 and comprising 66% of the total losses. Losses in 2023 have already surpassed those in 2022 by 40%. To protect against these scams, the FBI advises individuals to avoid engaging with unsolicited pop-ups, links sent via text messages, or email attachments. They should refrain from contacting telephone numbers provided in such communications and never download software at the request of unfamiliar individuals. Granting control of one’s computer to unknown individuals should also be avoided.

Furthermore, it is emphasized by the FBI that the U.S. government will never request cryptocurrency, gift/prepaid cards, or money through wire transfers to foreign accounts. Anyone targeted by these scams should promptly report the incidents by filing a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Complaints should include details such as the identity of the individual or company making contact, the communication method used, and the recipient’s name and address to which funds were sent.

In a previous advisory, law enforcement warned of scammers impersonating refund payment portals of financial institutions, particularly targeting the elderly demographic. These scammers exploit the perceived credibility of such institutions to deceive victims.