More needs to be done to prevent older Australians falling victim to scams, with new data released today revealing older Australians lost nearly $100 million to scams in 2024, COTA Australia says.
COTA Australia – the leading advocacy organisation for older people – Chief Executive Officer, Patricia Sparrow said that while Scamwatch data released today shows a very welcome significant overall drop in Australians’ scam losses of over 33 per cent, too many older people are still falling victim.
The latest Scamwatch data for the full 2024 calendar year shows Australians aged 65 and over reported 62,147 scams with total losses of $99.6 million, with investment scams accounting for $66.5 millions of those losses.
“It’s great that the scam trends for the broader community are heading in the right direction, but unfortunately the figures around over 65s are far from rosy,” Ms Sparrow said.
“Over 62,000 older Australians were targeted by scammers last year, with nearly $100 million stolen from their retirement savings.
“Investment scams alone cost older Australians $66.5 million in 2024. These sophisticated criminal operations are specifically targeting retirement savings, often through social media platforms that aren’t doing enough to protect users.
“It’s clear the actions being taken are working, but it’s also clear that there’s still much work to be done, especially when it comes to protecting older people.
Ms Sparrow said Parliament needs to pass the Scams Prevention Framework Bill to ensure banks, telecommunications companies and social media platforms are held accountable for preventing scams and properly compensating victims when prevention fails is crucial.
COTA Australia is also urging the Federal Government support victims through a trial of peer-led training and support service for victims of online fraud and scams.
“In our work on digital literacy we’ve found that older people report they are more comfortable sharing their experiences and learning from their peers,” Ms Sparrow said.
“Trialling peer-led training and support services for victims of online fraud and scams will help reduce the incidents of and number of scams amongst older victims. A peer-support service to support older Australians is one practical way we can help combat this issue.
“We can’t ignore the fact that too many Australians, particularly older Australians, are still being scammed out of their savings.
“This is about protecting Australians, including older people, and safeguarding the financial wellbeing and digital confidence of all Australians.”
