Financial Crimes Against the Elderly: Guides & Reports
Fighting Financial Fraud:
How to Shield Yourself from Swindles
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Spring 2003.
A special FDIC report to help consumers defend against an array of scams involving checks, credit cards,
ATMs, the Internet and other bank products and services.
Financial Abuse Specialist Team Video (F.A.S.T.)
Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), August 2002.
This 30-minute video from the Office for Victims of Crime highlights financial
crime against the elderly and features the work of Santa Clara County's
Department of Aging and Adult Services, which created a Financial Abuse
Specialist Team (F.A.S.T.) that has been nationally recognized for its work
fighting elder financial abuse. The video educates viewers on all aspects of
elder financial fraud and serves as a template for agencies interested in
creating a F.A.S.T. team in their own communities. (NCJ 198153)
Financial Crimes Against the Elderly
Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), August 2004.
This Problem Oriented Policing guide describes the problem of financial crimes
committed against the elderly and their risk factors. It identifies a series of
questions to help you analyze your local problem, and reviews responses to the
problem and describes the conditions under which they are most effective.
Assessing Responses to Problems: An Introductory Guide for Police Problem Solvers
Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), February 2004.
This is a companion for the POP Guide series designed to help agencies analyze
and evaluate responses to specific crime problems. It focuses on helping
departments answer two questions: Did the problem decline? And if so, did the
response cause the decline?
Protecting the Elderly from Financial Abuse
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), December 1997.
This article originally published in the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin shows how
the problem of elder abuse needs serious attention by law enforcement, although
it can be difficult to detect and prosecute. One well-known strategy is the
Triad program, a collaborative effort of the county sheriff, local police
agencies, and senior citizen groups. In addition to this and other efforts,
police need more training in the recognition and apprehension of those who abuse
elders. Investigative coalitions and the sharing of information among social
services, law enforcement, and financial institutions are also useful
approaches. Other strategies include law reforms, education of the elderly to
recognize financial victimization, and programs for offenders.
Victims of Fraud & Economic Crime
Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), May 2000.
This Bulletin studies victims of fraud and economic crime and proposes ways to
expand victim support services. The Bulletin contains priorities for helping
victims of fraud and economic crime; ways the Federal Government can lead the
support; a suggested plan of action at the national level; and a response to the
action plan from the Office for Victims of Crime.
The following documents are only available through the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) library.
To obtain them, go to the NCJRS library
and enter the document’s NCJ number into the search page.
Introducing a Framework for Defining Financial Abuse of the Elderly
Department of Health and Human Service (HHS), 1996
This article, originally published in the Journal of Elder Abuse and Neglect, offers a framework for identifying
financial abuse of the elderly. That includes the characteristics of the older person that suggest vulnerability
to abuse; the nature of the relationship between the suspected wrongdoer and the older person; the outcomes and
interests served by the relationship; and the type of influence used by the suspected wrongdoer. (NCJ 167053)
Older People and Consumer Fraud
Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC), June 2001.
This paper reports on data from a large Australian survey of older persons'
criminal victimization, with attention to older peoples' risk of being
victimized by consumer fraud. The focus on fraud in this paper pertains to
consumer victimization that may occur when someone is selling something or
delivering services. It includes such areas as commercial transactions
(telemarketing, Internet sales, door-to-door sales, and mail orders); home
repairs and home construction; buying and servicing vehicles; and financial
transactions. (NCJ 190955)
Telemarketing Fraud and Older Americans: An AARP Survey
AARP, 1996
This 1995 survey, sponsored by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) and based on interviews with
745 telemarketing fraud victims who were 50 years of age and older, found that older victims were more frequently
victimized by telemarketing fraud than younger people. (NCJ 164400)
Victimization of Persons by Fraud
National Institute of Justice (NIJ), January 1995
This article presents the results of a survey of the victimization of persons by personal fraud, defined as the
deliberate intent to deceive with promises of goods, services, or other financial benefits that in fact do not
exist or were never intended to be provided. The article contains data based on a national telephone survey involving
a representative probability sample of 1,246 respondents aged 18 and older.
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