Build a Network to Fight Elder Fraud
By Todd Rovak, CEO, Carefull
September 3, 2024
Fraud and scams targeting older Americans have become increasingly sophisticated and devastating. Adults 60 and older are losing an estimated $28 billion to elder financial exploitation, according to AARP. Combating criminals who prey on older adults is a true challenge, because many of these crimes are behavioral. The victims play a pivotal role in the crime, tricked by the culprits into happily handing money over. However, there is cause for hope: A key solution to stopping these bad actors is leveraging a network of support, something baked into the fabric of the credit union movement.
Since the Massachusetts Credit Union Act was enacted in 1909 and the credit union movement was launched, community has been at the core of the operation of these member-owned financial institutions. The shorthand of “people helping people” says it all. Credit unions thrive because they activate local communities and create a network of support. This community support is the key to stopping elder fraud.
When there is third-party intervention, more than half of people targeted by scammers report that they avoid losing money, according to a study by FINRA, Better Business Bureau and Stanford Center for Aging. By tapping into their networks and driving that intervention, credit unions can take real steps toward stopping elder fraud and exploitation.
Scammers who target older adults often succeed because of victim isolation. Whether criminals do so under the auspices of romance or masquerade as a credit union’s fraud team, they create an alternative reality for victims and use it to insulate them from their family and friends. In essence, they seek to remove any and all support systems that would tip victims off that something is not right. At some point, though, the victims will engage with their financial institution, which is when a credit union’s unique position can help protect its members.
The Unique Advantage of Credit Unions
A member’s relationship with a credit union is often much more personal than with any other type of financial institution. In fact, many older members now facing the threat of elder fraud are likely among those who founded the union. They have a long history, they know the staff, and they trust what the staff have to say.
Armed with the knowledge to identify a victim, a credit union’s frontline staff can leverage this trust to help members who’ve been targeted by scammers understand their situation. By staying focused on the pattern of the member’s behavior and positioning themselves as an independent voice in the scenario, the process of deprogramming the scam can begin.
Leveraging the Power of a Family
The impact of these interventions can be amplified well when a trusted family member can also be part of the conversation. It is up to the credit union to initiate that interaction.
Credit unions have several options when it comes to creating a family network to help protect older members from fraud. The most structured approach is to encourage members to provide trusted contacts, people the credit union can reach out to if it suspects fraud on their accounts. In fact, some states are advancing elder fraud legislation that explicitly calls for depository institutions to let members and customers identify trusted contacts. But given the threat to membership, exploring a more streamlined, integrated approach to naming trusted contacts and giving them view-only access to accounts or alerts when unusual transactions occur could be a powerful step for a credit union to take.
Rounding Out Protections
The natural networks that come from credit unions, while powerful, also need to be part of a robust system of prevention and detection. The hard truth is that elder fraud is a never-ending wave crashing on your doorstep. Fraud is going to find its way in, and when it does, detection becomes necessary to uncover and remediate the threat. As scams become more complex, the detection you choose needs to be tailored to the unique threats older members face to be most effective. The threat profile of a person over 55 is different from that of a younger adult. Therefore, having standard fraud protection is often not enough.
The good news is that there is a solution. By staying current on the newest threats, leveraging the networks they create and leveraging progressive fraud detection partners, credit unions can start winning this important fight.
Connect with Carefull to learn more.
About Carefull
Carefull is a PRT (protect/retain/transfer) service for credit unions purpose-built to protect older members, retain deposits, and bridge to the next generation ahead of wealth transfer. It is the first and only digital platform designed to help credit unions protect the daily finances of seniors while assisting the adult children who often support them.