Key takeaways

• Scams are becoming commonplace in everyday life, with 91% of Americans having encountered a cyberattack or digital scam attempt.
• Americans reported losing $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025, as scammers used tactics like fear, trust, and urgency to manipulate financial decisions.
• Recognizing the red flags, independently verifying requests, and securing your accounts can help protect your retirement savings.

Imagine trusting someone you met online with your future, only to discover they've been manipulating you into handing over your life savings. What started as a promising relationship becomes an investment opportunity, with impressive returns encouraging you to put in more money. Eventually, you're withdrawing from retirement accounts you've spent decades building. By the time you realize it's a scam, the money is gone.

That's what happened to Jackie Crenshaw, who lost approximately $900,000 to a romance and cryptocurrency investment scam, including $40,000 withdrawn from her 401(k).¹

It's easy to hear a story like hers and think, I'd never fall for that. But scams can happen to anyone, regardless of age or financial experience. Romance scams are just one way criminals manipulate people into handing over their money. Others impersonate banks, businesses, or government officials, sometimes threatening arrest or claiming an account has been compromised. While the scenarios differ, the tactics often rely on the same emotions: fear, trust, and urgency.

Scams are growing in scale

Americans reported losing $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025 alone, according to the Federal Trade Commission.² And reports of six-figure losses to business and government impersonation scams among adults 60 and older increased nearly sevenfold between 2020 and 2024.³ 

Artificial intelligence is adding another layer of sophistication. Scammers can use AI to create realistic voices, videos, fake identities, and convincing messages that appear to come from trusted sources. In 2025, the FBI received more than 22,000 complaints involving AI, with nearly $893 million in reported losses.⁴

With 91% of Americans having encountered a cyberattack or digital scam attempt, recognizing the warning signs could be the difference between protecting your retirement savings and handing them over to a scammer.⁵

The most common financial scams

Financial scams take many forms, from convincing people to send money to gaining unauthorized access to their accounts. Some common types include:

• Imposter scams: Criminals pose as banks, businesses or other trusted organizations, claiming there's suspicious activity on your account, an unauthorized purchase or a security problem. They may ask you to share personal information or transfer money to a supposedly safe account.
• Government impersonation scams: Someone claiming to be a government official or law enforcement agent warns that your identity has been linked to a crime or that you're facing arrest. They may demand payment or instruct you to move money to resolve the supposed problem.
• Romance scams: Fraudsters build relationships online, sometimes over weeks or months, before requesting money or introducing fraudulent investment opportunities. These scams often rely on emotional trust rather than immediate pressure.
• Phishing and account hacking: Fraudulent emails, texts, or websites trick people into clicking malicious links or revealing login credentials. Once scammers gain access to an account, they may steal personal information, impersonate trusted contacts, or attempt unauthorized transactions.

Scams change. The red flags don’t

Scammers may use different stories and increasingly convincing technology, but many of the warning signs remain the same. Be cautious when someone:

🚩 Appears to be someone you trust: Claims to represent a family member, employer, financial institution or government agency.

🚩 Requests unusual payments: Asks for money through cryptocurrency, gift cards, wire transfers, or payment apps.

🚩 Asks for sensitive information: Requests passwords, security codes, or personal details they shouldn't need.

🚩 Creates pressure or secrecy: Insists you act immediately or keep the conversation confidential.

How to help protect your savings

Recognizing the warning signs is important, but a few simple habits can also help protect your money and personal information.

• Pause: Stop before clicking links, sharing information, or sending money in response to an unexpected request. Don't let urgency make the decision for you.
• Verify: Contact the person or organization using a phone number, website, or contact you already trust, rather than information provided in a suspicious message.
• Protect: Register and regularly monitor your financial accounts. Use long, unique passwords, enable multifactor authentication (MFA), protect your email and phone, and keep your contact information up to date.

If you suspect fraud: Act quickly. Contact Empower and any affected financial institutions, secure your accounts, and review recent activity for unauthorized transactions or changes. If your email or device may be compromised, use a different trusted device to update your passwords. Consider a credit freeze or fraud alert if your personal information has been exposed and continue monitoring your accounts.

For more information on protecting your accounts, visit the Empower Security Center.