estimated 70% of the nation’s invested wealth, making elderly adults prime targets for fraudsters.5 According to the National Money Laundering Risk Assessment, fraud remains the number one predicate crime in the U.S. today.6 In addition, in its most recent annual report to Congress on the agency’s actions to protect older adults, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that total fraud losses reported by older adults increased almost fourfold from 2020 to 2024 ($600 million to $2.4 billion), largely driven by reports of losses exceeding $100,000, often to investment scams, romance scams or impersonations, e.g., government, business, family (grandparent), friends, et al.7 In 2024, older adults reported losing far more money to investment scams than to any other fraud type, often reporting that the scammers targeted them on social media. In April 2026, the FTC reported that social media scams resulted in far more losses than any other contact method scammers used to reach consumers.8 Reports show that in 2025, people reported losing more money to scams that started on Facebook than on any other social media platform. The data also show that all age groups, except those 80 and over, reported losing more money to scams that started on social media than to any other contact method, and social media ranked second only to phone calls for those 80 and over. In its recent Internet Crime Report, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reported that 20% of the record 1 million complaints received in 2025 were from consumers age 60 and over, with that population suffering 37% of the total $20.8 billion reported losses.9 Practices for Institutions to Consider The five financial regulatory agencies have provided examples of risk management and other practices for financial institutions that may help combat EFE, including: • Train employees on recognizing and responding to EFE • Use transaction holds and disbursement delays, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law • Establish a trusted contact designation process for account holders • Report suspected EFE to law enforcement, Adult Protective Services and other appropriate entities • Engage with elder fraud prevention and response networks • File suspicious activity reports (SARs) in a timely manner • Increase awareness through consumer outreach Various government agencies provide tools and resources to help older clients either avoid becoming victims or recover when the fraud has occurred, including: • The FTC publishes a variety of consumer alerts to raise awareness of the latest fraud techniques and maintains a plethora of “fact sheets” addressing fraud trends to help educate elderly clients as part of the FTC’s Pass It On education campaign. • The U.S. Department of Justice maintains the Elder Justice Initiative with links to the various state agencies that can assist elderly victims and manages the National Elder Fraud Hotline at (833) 372-8311. • The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has developed materials to help a financial institution establish a “trusted contact” program. How Forvis Mazars Can Help With 7.9% of SARs filed in the first quarter of 2026 referencing EFE, it is important that financial institutions adopt policies and procedures to protect their elderly clients from financial exploitation.10 Our ProBank Education Services team at Forvis Mazars can help your institution navigate regulatory compliance. If you have any questions or need assistance, please reach out to one of our professionals. For more information, scan the QR code to watch our on-demand webinar, “Elder Financial Exploitation (EFE) ― Updated Fincen Guidance.” https://www.probank.com/product/elder-financialexploitation-efe-updated-fincen-guidance/ Mark W. Dever, AAP, CAMS, is a director at Forvis Mazars. Prior to joining the firm in 1996, Dever was vice president and manager of cash management operations for a multibillion-dollar regional bank holding company with several affiliates. He has extensive experience in many areas, including the automated clearing house (ACH), domestic wire transfer, affiliate bank post-acquisition conversions and consolidations, bank operation centralizations, and payment system risk. His areas of expertise include education, ACH processing and compliance, and AML/BSA. 1 “Elder Financial Exploitation Awareness,” nacha.org, 2025. 2 “Advisory on Elder Financial Exploitation,” fincen.gov, June 15, 2022. 3 “Financial Trend Analysis,” fincen.gov, April 2024. 4 “U.S. and World Population Clock,” census.gov, June 18, 2026. 5 “Elder Financial Exploitation Awareness,” nacha.org, 2024. 6 “2026 National Money Laundering Risk Assessment,” home.treasury.gov, March 2026. 7 “FTC Issues Annual Report to Congress on Agency’s Actions to Protect Older Adults,” ftc.gov, December 1, 2025. 8 “Reported losses to scams on social media eight times higher than in 2020,” ftc.gov, April 27, 2026. 9 “Federal Bureau of Investigation Internet Crime Report 2025,” ic3.gov, 2025. 10 “SAR Stats,” fincen.gov, updated May 31, 2026. Colorado Banker 6
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