Here are five common scams to watch for in 2025.

1. Employment scams

Every source contacted for this article — from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) — reported a rise in employment scams, from phony ads on job sites to fake recruitment pitches in your inbox.

In some cases, the goal is simply to gain your personal information. You’re told you got the job, so you fill out paperwork that includes your Social Security number and your bank account info for direct deposit, notes Melanie McGovern, director of public relations and social media for the International Association of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.

More elaborate scams can involve bogus payments. Some scams, for example, ask would-be employees to pay for training or useless certifications. Others pay new staffers a bonus (with a check that will eventually bounce), then ask for money back due to “overpayment,” the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports. Scammers might also request money to cover shipment costs for job-related equipment.

How to stay safe: Remember that just because ads appear on reputable platforms such as LinkedIn and Indeed, it doesn’t mean they’re genuine.

“Those platforms do their best to police what’s there, but they cannot catch everything,” says Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of ITRC. “And the bad actors often use the name of a real hiring manager and make it look like they are involved in that company.”

If you’re contacted by a recruiter, visit the company’s website and see if they’re hiring for that particular position, if the person actually works there, and if it’s a legitimate company. Also watch for jobs that promise you can work at home while making big money. During the application process, companies only need basic information — not your Social Security number or financial information. And if you’re promised a job but required to pay money, it’s a scam.

2. Cryptocurrency scams

Cryptocurrency is hot, with the price of one Bitcoin reaching $100,000 for the first time in December 2024. That may be good for savvy investors, but the hype could lure novices into cryptocurrency scams — with huge potential losses. In 2023, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3.gov) received nearly 9,000 cryptocurrency complaints from people age 50-59. Their total losses: more than $900 million. People age 60 and older registered nearly 17,000 complaints and reported losses of $1.6 billion. (The numbers are probably far higher, because scams are notoriously underreported.)

Scammers use dating apps, messaging apps, social media and other communications to build relationships and trust with their targets, then share their “expertise” on investments, frequently promising large returns and little risk. In 2023, this “confidence-enabled cryptocurrency investment fraud” was the most prominent type of crypto scam, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reports.

Criminals often show victims fake profit reports, which encourages them to invest more. But when investors try to withdraw funds, they’re frequently charged outrageous fees. The bogus companies then typically vanish before investors receive their money.

How to stay safe: If you’re interested in crypto but lack expertise, talk with a financial advisor. And watch for impostor sites that mimic actual companies. In California, one victim transferred over $127,000 to two crypto exchanges, one of which was Celestia.bet. The true network, however, is Celestia.org.

To confirm that a company is legit, make sure it’s registered with the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the National Futures Association. Also avoid companies with no physical address or customer service line, the CFTC suggests. 

Also beware of requests to pay for something or address an urgent financial matter with crypto; they may ask you to use a crypto ATM. “Crypto is the payment method in a lot of different scams,” Velasquez says, because it’s hard to trace and payments usually can’t be reversed.

3. Celebrity impostor scams

The AARP Fraud Watch Network receives dozens of reports of celebrity impostor scams every month. Some involve phony product endorsements, such as fake video of Kelly Clarkson or Shark Tank judges promoting weight-loss gummies. But what most concerns Nofziger are scams where people believe they’ve entered a romance or friendship with a celebrity.

“These are the ones we see the most,” she says. The scammer hits the victim when they are emotionally vulnerable, she explains — when they might be feeling unworthy, lonely, or bored, or grieving the loss of a loved one. The supposed celebrity needs money, whether launching a new charity or putting down money on the house where you both will live.

How to stay safe: No legitimate celebrity will ever ask for money or personal information online. Most celebrities don’t manage their own social media accounts, so if you truly believe that you’re communicating with a star, go to the celebrity’s website and contact their management team to confirm, says Nofziger.

Before buying a product based on a celebrity recommendation, conduct an online search of the person and product, with words like “scam” or “fake,” the FTC suggests. When you see a celebrity promoting a product or making a political statement on a t-shirt, hat, flag — any surface with text — be suspicious. Those surfaces can be a canvas for false messages; it’s become easy to alter photos (here’s how to tell if a photo is fake).

The FTC is trying to fight these bogus endorsements. In August 2024, the agency announced a new rule that prohibits “fake or false consumer reviews, consumer testimonials, and celebrity testimonials” and allows it “to seek civil penalties against knowing violators.”

4. Tech support scams

Consumers age 60 and older are five times more likely than their younger counterparts to lose money to tech support scams, which cost older Americans more $175 million in 2023, the FTC reported to Congress in October 2024.

The fraud frequently starts with a pop-up message — often with a logo from companies like Microsoft or Apple — saying your computer has a virus. You click a link or call a supposed support number, and they request remote access to your computer. The criminals can now access all of the information on your machine and also install malware.

The scammers may also try to sell you useless software, maintenance or warranty programs. In March 2024, the FTC reached a $26 million settlement with two tech-support companies who used fake Microsoft pop-ups to lure consumers into buying software. Or they may install malware to harvest login credentials to your online accounts, including financial accounts.

How to stay safe: Legitimate tech companies won’t call, email, or text about problems with your computer, and their pop-ups will never ask you to make a call or click a link.

If a tech support person calls you unexpectedly, it’s almost surely a scam, the FTC states. Hang up, even if the number looks real. Never click on a pop-up, never give remote access to someone who calls you out of the blue, and never share your password. If the pop-up won’t go away, restart your computer, suggests scam expert Steve Weisman, founder of Spamicide.com. If you do share your password, change it immediately, he adds. And if you give someone remote access to your computer, update your security software and run a scan, or have a trusted person or big box tech store scan it for you.

5. Card-declined scams

The BBB’s Scam Tracker has received many recent reports from consumers whose credit cards are declined while making an online purchase. Typically they try using a different card, but that one fails, too. And yet despite the card-declined notices, the charges have actually occurred for each transaction — and often for more than they thought. After her card was denied, one victim tried it a second time, and received the same card-declined message. Then her credit card company alerted her that it had declined a $2,500 charge — even though she hadn’t made a $2,500 charge while struggling with her transaction, she reported to the BBB.

“This is the scam I’m most concerned about,” says McGovern. “We’ve seen a noticeable increase in card-declined problems.”

The fraud typically occurs when people visit fraudulent sites or click on fraudulent links. In September 2024, the American Automobile Association (AAA) warned its members about emails and texts (which appeared to come from AAA customer service) offering a free AAA car emergency kit if people took a survey. The catch: You had to pay for shipping. So people entered their credit card info and then received the card-declined message. One victim told AAA he found several fraudulent charges on his two credit cards.

How to stay safe: Always use a credit card rather than a debit card, because credit cards offer stronger fraud protections. If you’re unfamiliar with a company, research it before making a purchase. And make sure a website is genuine. Scammers often build lookalike sites, the BBB notes, so scrutinize the URL (sometimes a letter or two might be different).

Perhaps most importantly, if you receive an unsolicited offer, ignore it. “Don’t click on any links or answer any calls,” Bruemmer says. “Those same rules apply to shopping scams, charity scams, job scams — if you didn’t ask for it, don’t touch it.”

Report scams

If you spot or have been victim of a scam, file a police report. Also report scams to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. The more information authorities have, the better they can identify patterns, link cases and ultimately catch the criminals. ​​You can also report scams to the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline, 877-908-3360. It’s a free resource, with trained fraud specialists who can provide support and guidance on what to do next and how to avoid scams in the future.  ​​Learn more about what to do after a scam here. ​​

reprinted from AARP Fraud Watch Network

reprinted from AARP Fraud Watch Network

Follow these 3 tips to protect yourself from Medicare fraud and scams:

1. If you get a call, text or email asking for your Medicare Number, don’t respond. Don’t give your Medicare card or Medicare Number to anyone except your doctor or people you know should have it.
2. Check your Medicare Summary Notices (MSNs) or claims statements carefully. If you see a charge for a service you didn’t get or a product you didn’t order, it may be fraud. If you suspect fraud, report it at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). 
3. Guard your Medicare card like it’s a credit card.

211 Maine is a free, confidential helpline that assists all Mainers in finding local resources to help meet their basic needs and thrive. Mainers can connect to specialists and receive information and referrals by calling 211, texting their zip code to 898-211, or searching at 211Maine.org.

211 Specialists can help find things like heating fuel payment assistance, food pantries, substance use treatment and recovery resources, and more.

Thousands of people reach out to 211 Maine every month looking for help for themselves or someone they know. Last year, the top needs received by 211 Maine included heating and utility assistance, housing and shelter resources, and mental health and substance use support.

211 Maine is an initiative of the Maine chapters of United Way Worldwide in partnership with the State of Maine. The Opportunity Alliance serves as the contact center partner.

reprinted from AARP Fraud Watch Network

With cold air blanketing many areas of the country, public health experts are urging older adults to take certain precautions. Just like extreme heat poses unique risks for aging individuals, so does extreme cold.

Much of it boils down to age-related changes that make older adults more likely to be affected by the cold, says Liron Sinvani, M.D., director of Geriatric Hospitalist Service at Northwell Health and an associate professor of medicine at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell.

For example, people tend to lose muscle as they age — a condition known as sarcopenia — and muscle provides insulation and generates heat, Sinvani says. Older adults are also more likely to have thinner skin, making it easier for heat to escape, and decreased blood flow, due to changes in their blood vessels. “All of these things culminate in a reduced ability to regulate their body heat,” putting them at greater risk for danger in cold weather, Sinvani explains.

What’s more, certain medical conditions that become more common with age can make it harder to stay warm, according to the National Institute on Aging. Diabetes, which affects roughly one-third of adults 65 and older, can prevent blood from flowing normally, which disrupts temperature regulation. Thyroid problems can affect the body’s ability to maintain a normal body temperature, and memory problems can prevent people from taking certain precautions, like wearing warm clothing.

When the body loses more heat than it can sustain, hypothermia can set in. This medical emergency, which occurs when the body’s core temperature drops below 95°F, can lead to serious health issues, like heart failure and organ damage, and can be life-threatening.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), warning signs of hypothermia can include:  

• Shivering
• Exhaustion or feeling very tired
• Confusion
• Fumbling hands
• Memory loss
• Slurred speech
• Drowsiness

Cold weather can trigger, worsen heart and lung issues

It’s not just hypothermia older adults need to worry about. Cold weather can cause or worsen other health problems, too.

Especially in older adults, it can cause blood pressure to increase, “and that can strain the heart and increase risk for catastrophic events,” says Haitham Khraishah, M.D., a preventive cardiologist at University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute. The American Heart Association explains that when it’s cold out, our blood vessels constrict to prevent heat from escaping and to keep more blood around the body’s core — this is what causes blood pressure to rise.

Extreme cold can also cause the blood to thicken, which can increase the risk of a blood clot, and up the odds of a heart attack or stroke, especially in people who already face higher cardiovascular risks, Khraishah adds.

Researchers have tracked an uptick in heart attacks linked to shoveling snow, in part due to the effects of the cold on the cardiovascular system. Khraishah’s advice: “Do not overexert yourself” when the temperatures dip. “Especially patients with prior heart attacks or existing heart failure, [cold weather] can exacerbate those conditions, so pay attention,” he says.

Another concern: Depression rates go up in the wintertime. “There’s much more isolation in January and February for older adults,” says Kenneth Koncilja, M.D., a physician in the Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics at Cleveland Clinic, and isolation has been linked to a number of negative health outcomes, including an increased risk of heart disease.

When it comes to the respiratory system, dry, cold air can irritate the airways and worsen chronic conditions like COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and asthma, Sinvani says. And it can make people more prone to infections by weakening the immune system, she adds. Results from a 2022 study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology suggest this is one reason why we see respiratory illnesses — cold, flu, COVID and more — spike in cold-weather months.

Beware of medications and winter weather

Some common medications can interfere with the body’s ability to regulate temperature, and the vast majority of older adults take at least one prescription medication. Examples include certain antidepressants, antipsychotics, narcotic pain medicines and sedatives, according to Mayo Clinic.

A person who takes diuretics is at greater risk for dehydration, and being dehydrated increases the risk of hypothermia, Sinvani says. And medications that can cause drowsiness or affect balance — this could be an over-the-counter cold and flu medication or a prescription blood pressure drug — can prove hazardous in icy or snowy conditions. “It’s a perfect storm for falls,” Sinvani says.

Prevent cold-related health hazards

How cold is too cold? There’s no universal outdoor temperature that signals you’re in the danger zone, Khraishah says. A lot of it depends on where you live and how your body has adapted. Someone who lives in Maine, for example, may be able to tolerate cold weather better than someone who lives in Arizona, so the thermometer isn’t always a reliable indicator. The key, he says, is to listen to your body and the news.

Opt in for weather alerts in your area, he says, and make sure you dress appropriately. The NIA suggests dressing in warm layers and wearing a hat, scarf and gloves to prevent heat loss through your head and hands.

Koncilja says older adults who exercise regularly throughout the year tend to be more resilient to weather changes. If you live in an area where snow and cold keep you from walking and biking outdoors year-round, take your workout indoors and try mall walking, which is free.

A few other tips: Limit the time you spend outside on cold-weather days, and if your clothes get damp or wet, be sure to change out of them as soon as you can.  

Keep your home’s thermostat around 68°F or higher, Sinvani says, and make sure you’re staying hydrated. Wear shoes with good traction on the soles to reduce fall risks, Koncilja says, Also, check in on neighbors and friends to make sure their heat is working. “Let’s be good community members and look out for people,” Sinvani says.

reprinted from https://www.aarp.org/

reprinted from AARP Fraud Protection Network

AI tools can be legitimately useful for many reasons, but they also can be easily weaponized by criminals to create realistic yet bogus voices, websites, videos and other content to perpetrate fraud. Many fear the worst is yet to come. 

We’re entering an “industrial revolution for fraud criminals,” says Kathy Stokes, AARP’s director of fraud prevention programs. AI “opens endless possibilities and, unfortunately, endless victims and losses.”

Criminals are already taking advantage of some of those “endless possibilities.”

Celebrity scams. A “deepfake” (that is, a computer-generated fake version of a person) video circulated showing chef Gordon Ramsay apparently endorsing HexClad cookware. He wasn’t. Later, a similar deepfake featured Taylor Swift touting Le Creuset. The likenesses of Oprah Winfrey, Kelly Clarkson and other celebs have been replicated via AI to sell weight loss supplements.

Fake romance. A Chicago man lost almost $60,000 in a cryptocurrency investment pitched to him by a romance scammer who communicated through what authorities believe was a deepfake video.

Sextortion. The FBI warns that criminals take photos and videos from children’s and adults’ social media feeds and create explicit deepfakes with their images to extort money or sexual favors.

Fighting back — with AI

Governments are scrambling to keep up with the fast-evolving technology. The White House in late 2023 issued an executive order calling for increased federal oversight of AI systems. The technology, it noted, “holds extraordinary potential for both promise and peril.” That led to the establishment of the U.S. AI Safety Institute within the U.S. ­Department of Commerce to “mitigate the risks that come with the development of this generation-defining technology,” as Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo put it.

As it turns out, AI may be our best tool for countering the malicious use of AI. 

How to protect yourself as AI fuels more sophisticated scams

Don’t trust your caller ID. If you get a call from a business, hang up and find the company’s number (for a bank, it will be on your financial statement, for example), then call directly. No matter what the pitch, anyone asking you to pay with a gift card is a scammer, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Pause before you click. Never click on a link in an email or text message without confirming that it’s from a legitimate source. Criminals can craft extremely sophisticated-looking messages, as well as fake websites that convincingly mimic real ones.

Consider choosing a safe word for your family. Share it only with family members or others in your inner circle. If someone calls claiming to be a grandchild, for example, you can ask for the safe word or words — rubber ducky, Fred Flintstone, whatever — and if the caller doesn’t know it, it’s clearly a scam.

Call back your “grandchild” in crisis. If you don’t have a safe word and your supposed grandchild or child calls saying there’s a medical emergency or some other crisis (sometimes callers say they’ve been kidnapped), they may add that their phone is broken so you can’t call them. Pause, take a breath (criminals try to rattle you to disrupt your rational thinking), and tell them you want to try to call them back anyway. Chances are your real grandchild will pick up, unharmed and bewildered by your concern.

Don’t click on ads to download software. The FTC says that if you see an ad for software that piques your interest, rather than clicking on a link, go to the company’s website by typing in its address. If you search for it online, the agency warns, “remember that scammers also place ads on search engines. They’ll appear at the top of your search results page and might have a label that says ‘Ad’ or ‘Sponsored.’ Scroll past those to get to your search results.”

Guard your personal information. To avoid identity theft, be careful about disclosing your full name, your home address, your Social Security number, credit card and banking information, and other personal details. Definitely don’t share information with someone you only know from email or texting.

Spread the word. Educate your loved ones on the latest scams and the advice above.

Report scams. If you spot a scam or you’ve been a victim of one, report it to the police, as well as the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The more information authorities have, the better they can identify patterns, link cases and ultimately catch the criminals.   

Fake Ads, Fake AI

It’s worth playing around with a chatbot to get a sense of the technology’s potential (and it’s kind of fun). But note that cybercriminals advertise AI tools on social media and search engines with links that will download malware on your computer if you click on them, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns.

Some sites are fake, the FTC says, but “some ads actually take you to the real software and download the malware through a ‘backdoor,’ which makes it hard to know you got hacked. Then, the criminals could steal your information and sell it to other hackers on the dark web, or get access to your online accounts and scam others.”

You can also report scams to the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline, 877-908-3360. It’s a free resource, with trained fraud specialists who can provide support and guidance on what to do next and how to avoid scams.