Protect Yourself from Financial Fraud and Scams

More Americans than ever are falling victim to financial scams, but experts say you can protect yourself by becoming informed about the latest tricks scammers are using.

To help local residents fight the problem, Pineland Bank is partnering with the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office and the Nassau County Council on Aging to provide free seminars about common financial scams in our community.

Pineland Bank, located at 715 Centre St., is hosting a Fraud Awareness program on April 17 from 4:30 – 6 p.m. The seminar is open to the public with limited seating.

The Nassau County Council on Aging will host similar classes on April 9 and June 26. Those classes will run from 11 a.m. to noon. To register, call 904-775-5477 or email mdawkins@nassaucountycoa.org.

“We have seen an increase in fraud and scams affecting our customers and other people,” says Mike Mickler, money coach at Pineland Bank. “We thought we needed to do whatever we can to tell people about what scams are out there. We want to knock down the stigma so people will talk about this.”

Fewer than half of Americans who are victims of fraud or scams report it to their banks, businesses or government agencies, according to a 2024 report from IPX1031, a subsidiary of Fidelity National Financial.

“People can be very embarrassed, especially our seniors,” Kathy Brennan, lobby manager at Pineland Bank. “They are reluctant to reach out even to family, and they worry their financial independence will be taken away. We had a few instances where people have left the bank in tears once they realized what happened. It was breaking our hearts.”

A report released in March by the Federal Trade Commission confirms what local banks are seeing. It showed U.S. consumers lost more than $12.5 billion to fraud last year — a 25% increase from 2023. The report noted that while the number of fraud reports remained stable (around 2.6 million reported), many more consumers who reported fraud or a scam said they had lost money.

The report showed the most common way consumers are scammed is through email, with phone calls being a second common tactic. The most commonly reported type of scam was imposter scams. However, scammers are constantly evolving, experts say. Financial scams range from blackmail, business and job opportunities, charitable giving, debt collection, mortgage loan modification, debt relief, grandparent scams, imposter, lottery/awards, mail fraud and mobile payments.

Payment methods often used by scammers include wire or money transfers, peer-to-peer payment services, gift cards and cryptocurrency.

“It’s up to us to combat it as much as possible,” Mickler says. “We want folks to come here and ask questions.”

Detective Hunter Owens, a financial fraud investigator with the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, will speak at the program at Pineland Bank.

“We’re going to point out some simple things you can do to protect yourself,” Mickler says. “There are a lot of things people don’t think about.”

The growing use of artificial intelligence has boosted the ability of scammers to fool people, Brennan said.

“Before, most people could quickly spot something that wasn’t real,” she says. “But AI is helping fraudsters make it look super legitimate. Is it real or is it not? We’re going to do activities with our guests to see if they can spot the red flags.”

Additional resources for understanding and avoiding financial fraud and scams are available on multiple government and organization websites. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a U.S. federal government agency has several guides on what to do if you are a victim, how to manage someone else’s money and warning signs of fraud. However, that agency is slated for funding cutbacks under the Trump Administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) program, so it’s unclear how much protection the CFPB may be able to offer consumers in the future, even as scams are on the upswing. See: www.consumerfinance.gov/

If you or someone you know has been a victim, report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center and the Federal Trade Commission.