Saint John – Although older adults could be more vulnerable to fraud, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) In San Juan, millennials and generation Z report the highest losses due to scams.
According to William Kiely, of the analytical intelligence division of the office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) In San Juan, cases of fraud in all economic sectors are increasingly sophisticated, adding more victims and larger losses.
During the fourth edition of the Financial Services Forum organized by the Association of International Banks (PRIBA, in English) and the Association of International Insurers (PRIIA, in English) of Puerto Rico, the statistics of fraud cases by age were presented, where The population most likely to be victims are people between 40 and 49 years old, who in 2023 reported 1,192 incidents of fraud with losses that amounted to almost $8.7 million.
| Age range | Number of victims 2023 | Total losses 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| less than 20 years | 23 | $3,535 |
| 20-29 years | 147 | $371,197 |
| 30-39 years | 189 | $1,446,927 |
| 40-49 years | 1,192 | $8,691,152 |
| 50-59 years | 612 | $7,340,420 |
| 60 years or older | 215 | $2,845,110 |
While, in 2022, the greatest losses due to fraud were suffered by consumers between 30 and 39 years old with 242 cases and more than $28.5 million in losses.
“Many people think that our over 65s, our seniors, are more susceptible to fraud, and in some cases that does not seem to be true. “I think it’s really important to see that the highest amounts of loss are actually coming from our Millennials and Gen Z,” Kiely said.
Last year, 215 cases of fraud were reported against people aged 60 or older, with losses exceeding $2.8 million, according to the data.
According to the data presented, the types of crimes with the most victims reported in Puerto Rico are frauds of “no lead value“, with 1,418 victims, which consist of the sale of false, irrelevant or unqualified contacts to do real business. This was followed by extortion cases with 157 victims and investment frauds with 137 victims.
“In Puerto Rico, investment fraud is really big, as well as data breaches, business email compromise, and some scams. phishing and impersonation,” Kiely said.
According to FBI fraud statistics, in 2023, total losses of $4.5 billion were reported in the United States, which is equivalent to an average of $16.6 million per victim.
The data was shared this Tuesday in the middle of the fourth edition of the Financial Services Forum organized by the Association of International Banks (PRIBA, in English) and the Association of International Insurers (PRIIA, in English) of Puerto Rico.
Increased use of generative artificial intelligence
The official highlighted that there is a growing interest in the use of generative artificial intelligence platforms – for example, ChatGPT – to automate security practices. phishing (fraudulent communications) and account control.
Multilevel marketing schemes
The FBI official noted that there is also a notable increase in scams targeting job seekers, particularly multi-level marketing (MLM) investment scams. In this type of scam, participants make more money by recruiting new people than by selling products or services.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, it gained popularity due to the growing interest in generating additional income from home.
MLM-style scams, which encourage victims to recruit other victims by unknowingly increasing the size of the fraud, can cause widespread harm.
On the other hand, synthetic identity theft occurs when a fraudster creates new identities by piecing together elements of a person’s personal information and combining them with false identifiers. These scams are readily available on online criminal forums and marketplaces, much of it stolen through data breaches.