Cyber scammers victimize 1,350 elderly South Carolinians

Acting United States Attorney M. Rhett DeHart announced today that, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 2020 Elder Fraud Report, 1,350 South Carolinians aged 60 or over fell victim to cyber scammers.  The report states that these South Carolinians reported losses of nearly $10 million in 2020.

Across the nation, there was over $1 billion in losses by victims aged 60 or over, representing 28% of all losses reported to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.  The average dollar loss by those aged 60 or over nationwide was $9,175.

Acting U.S. Attorney DeHart urges the public to be vigilant of these crimes and to help older family members, so they do not become the next victim of elder fraud scams.

According to the annual report from the FBI, the most common scams against seniors in 2020 were extortion, non-payment/non-delivery, tech support fraud, and identity theft.  Some of these crimes stemmed from the new use of digital purchasing of goods during the pandemic.

Any victim of cybercrimes can contact the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.