Cybersecurity Association of Pennsylvania is urging vigilance as senior citizens across the state and the nation face a surge in sophisticated “phantom hacker” scams. These multiphase social engineering attacks, recently highlighted in an FBI public service announcement, are leaving seniors vulnerable to devastating financial losses, often draining entire retirement accounts.

The FBI reports nearly half of the victims of these scams are older than 60, with seniors representing two-thirds of all losses. Nationwide, Americans have already lost more than $1 billion to this evolving fraud.

“These scams are not random cold calls — they are highly coordinated attacks that exploit trust, fear and urgency,” Chairman of PennCyber Scott Davis said. “Scammers use spoofed numbers, multiple impersonators and even follow-up calls or letters to create a convincing narrative. Seniors believe they’re protecting their money when, in fact, they are being deceived into handing it over to criminals.”

The scheme unfolds in the three following stages: Tech support impostor criminals pose as technical support, convincing victims to allow remote access to their computers; financial institution impostor scammers pose as a bank representative, claiming the victim’s accounts have been compromised and directing funds to a “safe” account; and U.S. government official impostors contact individuals and send official-looking documents to reinforce the deception.

Recent reports indicate scammers are also leveraging artificial intelligence to make their attacks even more convincing, targeting seniors based on personal interests, hobbies and online activities.

“This is not just a technology problem — it’s a people problem,” Davis said. “Criminals are manipulating human behavior and trust. Families need to have conversations with their loved ones, so they know how to recognize the warning signs. No government agency or legitimate financial institution will ever demand wire transfers, cryptocurrency or prepaid cards.”

PennCyber encourages families to immediately report any suspicious contact. The FBI urges victims to report incidents to their local FBI field office and the Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.