Senior Scam Prevention and Fraud Resources in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico seniors reported $8 million in elder fraud losses to the FBI in 2025, with 351 victims aged 60 and older. This page provides Puerto Rico-specific scam prevention resources, official reporting contacts, and five years of FBI elder fraud data for the state.
Already been scammed? Read our First 24 Hours Emergency Guide for critical steps to take immediately.
I. Overview: Puerto Rico’s Senior Population and Key Cities
As of 2024, Puerto Rico has a population of approximately 3.2 million, with over 740,000 residents aged 65 and older , accounting for 23.1% of the total population. This makes Puerto Rico one of the oldest jurisdictions in the United States in terms of age distribution.
Puerto Rican seniors face unique challenges. In 2025, losses reached $8.2 million with 351 victims. Investment scams led at $4 million (+146%). Two categories saw dramatic decreases: tech support fell 52% and romance scams dropped 87%. Government impersonation surged 981% to $249K. Language barriers and limited broadband access remain challenges for prevention and reporting.
The areas with the largest senior populations and highest reported fraud activity are:
- San Juan (capital; approx. 320,000 people)
- Bayamón (approx. 160,000 people)
- Ponce (approx. 130,000 people)
II. 2025 Victim Report: How Scammers Targeted Puerto Rico’s Seniors
In 2025, Puerto Rico had 351 victims aged 60+ who reported losses totaling $8,167,452 — up 23% in victims but down 60% in losses compared to 2024 (285 victims / $20M).
Loss by Crime Type
| Crime Type | 2025 Loss | 2024 Loss | Change |
| Investment | $3,967,090 | $1,611,302 | +146% |
| Tech Support | $76,346 | $158,869 | -52% |
| Romance | $141,550 | $1,090,937 | -87% |
| Lottery/Sweepstakes | $1,500 | $2,650 | -43% |
| Extortion | $19,420 | $99,467 | -80% |
| Government Impersonation | $248,519 | $23,000 | +981% |
Elder Fraud Loss Trajectory — Puerto Rico
5-Year Elder Fraud Trend — Puerto Rico (2021—2025)
| Year | Victims (60+) | Total Loss | YoY Change | Nat’l Rank |
| 2021 | 195 | $3,575,884 | — | #45 |
| 2022 | 190 | $2,363,832 | -34% | #52 |
| 2023 | 215 | $2,845,110 | +20% | #52 |
| 2024 | 285 | $20,183,422 | +609% | #39 |
| 2025 | 351 | $8,167,452 | -60% | #50 |
| 5-Year Total | 1,236 | $37,135,700 | +128% (2021—2025) | — |
Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) Annual Reports, 2021—2025. Covers victims aged 60 and older. National rank is by total dollar loss among 52 states/territories. National totals: $1.7B (2021), $3.1B (2022), $3.4B (2023), $4.9B (2024), $7.7B (2025) — $20.8 billion stolen from American seniors over five years.
Top Crime Types Targeting Puerto Rico Seniors (2025 vs. 5-Year)
| Crime Type | 2025 Victims | 2025 Loss | 5-Year Total | Growth (2021—25) |
| Investment | 87 | $3,967,090 | $6,368,709 | +1,697% |
| BEC | 11 | $492,542 | $10,203,609 | -75% |
| Personal Data Breach | 23 | $373,098 | $7,000,005 | +12,560% |
| Gov. Impersonation | 20 | $248,519 | $476,974 | +14,020% |
| Romance | 22 | $141,550 | $2,892,123 | -88% |
| Tech Support | 25 | $76,346 | $1,529,594 | +103% |
Top 6 crime types by 2025 losses. Growth calculated from 2021 to 2025. For national crime type trends, see our Crime Type Migration Analysis.
What the data reveals: Puerto Rico’s elder fraud losses totaled $8.2 million in 2025, with 351 seniors victimized. Investment scams grew 146% to $4 million, accounting for nearly half of all losses. The data shows a striking split: two categories saw dramatic decreases — tech support fell 52% and romance scams plunged 87% (from $1.1 million to just $142K) — while government impersonation surged 981% from $23K to $249K.
National context: Puerto Rico ranks #50 in total losses among all 52 states and territories. The 87% romance scam decline and 52% tech support drop are among the steepest decreases nationally in those categories — a potentially positive signal. However, the 981% government impersonation surge and rising investment fraud suggest scammers may be shifting to new tactics. Puerto Rico’s unique combination of Spanish-language targeting, rural isolation, and limited broadband creates distinct vulnerability patterns.
For the full national picture, including how Puerto Rico compares to every other state, visit our national hub page with interactive data and rankings.
III. Emergency and Official Contacts
Local Police Departments – Elder Fraud and Financial Crimes
1. Puerto Rico Police Bureau – San Juan Command
- Phone: (787) 343-2020 (island-wide crime reporting line)
- Website: policia.pr.gov
- Contact to report elder scams, cyber fraud, or financial exploitation.
2. Bayamón Police Area Command
- Phone: (787) 269-2424
- Same island-wide resources apply; use 343-2020 or local station for elder fraud cases.
3. Ponce Police Area Command
- Phone: (787) 284-4040
- Also uses centralized reporting structure through 343-2020.
FBI and Federal Scam Reporting
FBI San Juan Field Office
- Phone: (787) 754-6000
- Website: www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/sanjuan
- Handles high-level elder fraud, romance scams, cybercrime, and federal offenses.
Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
- Website: www.ic3.gov
- Use to report phishing, tech support scams, crypto fraud, and online elder exploitation.
Puerto Rico Department of Justice – Consumer Protection
Departamento de Asuntos del Consumidor (DACO)
- Consumer Hotline: (787) 722-7555
- Website: www.daco.pr.gov
- Provides consumer fraud investigation and protection services, including for seniors.
Senior Protection Services and Medicare Fraud Support
Puerto Rico Adult Protective Services (Servicios de Protección para Adultos)
- Main Contact: (800) 981-8333 (Department of Family Affairs – ADSEF)
- Website: familia.pr.gov
- Investigates reports of abuse, neglect, and elder financial exploitation.
Puerto Rico Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP)
- Phone: (800) 975-3102
- Website: www.patrullamedicarepr.org
- Offers fraud prevention education and assistance with Medicare-related scams.
Oficina del Procurador de las Personas de Edad Avanzada (OPPEA)
- Phone: (787) 721-6121
- Website: oppea.pr.gov
- Provides legal advocacy, elder abuse reporting, and assistance to seniors and caregivers.
Proteja a sus seres queridos. Infórmese. Denuncie.
- Puerto Rican seniors lose millions of dollars annually to fraud and scams.
- Saving emergency numbers and reporting early can prevent further harm.
- Visit our Education Center for tools, red flags, and multilingual guides.
- Cuando tenga dudas, deténgase, verifique y hable con alguien de confianza.
Recent Puerto Rico scam news
Recent news coverage of scams affecting Puerto Rico seniors, updated from our alerts desk. Each item links to the original outlet; victims and defendants are kept anonymous.
The 'phantom hacker' scam: how a months-long con convinces victims to hand cash or gold to a courier
Federal prosecutors describe a growing 'phantom hacker' scheme in which a caller falsely claims a victim's bank or investment account has been compromised, then, days or weeks later, someone posing as a government official tells the victim their money needs to be moved to a 'safe' government account to protect it. After building trust over an extended period, the scammers convince victims to withdraw cash or buy gold and hand it to someone who arrives in person posing as a government agent, sometimes claiming to be a U.S. Attorney or other official. In one related Arizona case, a victim transferred more than $400,000 in assets before realizing it was a scam. No real government agency or bank will ever ask you to withdraw money, buy gold, or hand valuables to a courier to 'protect' them, so if you get a call like this, slow down, hang up, and verify by contacting the agency or bank directly using a number you look up yourself.
Read at U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona →House committee report calls for an 'all-of-ecosystem' approach to fighting scams, including elder fraud
A U.S. House Financial Services Committee report is calling for a coordinated national strategy against fraud and scams, arguing that stopping them requires cooperation across banks, technology platforms, telecommunications carriers, and law enforcement, not just the moment a payment happens. The report cites FTC data showing more than 3 million fraud reports and $15.9 billion in reported losses in 2025, and specifically flags elder exploitation among the scam types it wants better addressed alongside impostor schemes, phishing, and crypto fraud. It recommends stronger consumer education, deliberate friction to slow suspicious transactions, more cross-industry data sharing, and wider use of AI-powered fraud-detection tools, and it launched a new public resource site explaining common scam red flags in plain language. The American Bankers Association welcomed the report's call for a coordinated approach that brings platforms, carriers, and financial institutions into the effort together.
Read at JD Supra →Senate Aging Committee presses nine major AI companies for safeguards protecting older users
The Senate Special Committee on Aging sent letters to nine major AI companies asking what safeguards their AI chatbot 'companion' products have for older adults, people with disabilities, and people in crisis, including how the products are tested, how harms are tracked, and whether independent researchers can access data to study the effects on older users. Companies have until August 31, 2026 to respond. The letters follow a bipartisan committee hearing, held by the committee's Republican chairman together with its Democratic ranking member and another Democratic senator, examining how AI has been used in scams against seniors; at that hearing the committee released a new report citing the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center for almost $21 billion in cybercrime losses in 2025, with $893 million tied to AI-enabled scams. The report's recommendations include a centralized federal scam-reporting portal that would automatically route complaints to the right agency, expanded law enforcement training and cryptocurrency-tracing tools, and new protections against unauthorized AI-generated voice and image replicas. The committee framed it directly: protecting older Americans from AI-enabled fraud and expanding their access to helpful AI tools 'are not competing priorities; they are two sides of the same obligation.'
Read at McKnight's Senior Living →Expert: AI voice cloning is making grandparent and impersonation scams more convincing
At a fraud-prevention session, a consumer-protection expert explained how AI is raising the stakes on scams that already target seniors: fraudsters can pull audio from social media to clone a family member's voice for a fake emergency call, and use AI to alter faces and voices on video calls to look and sound legitimate. He said government agencies never initiate contact by phone, so any call claiming to be the IRS, Social Security, or the FBI is a scam, and that any request to pay through a cryptocurrency ATM is always a scammer. Other advice: legitimate tech companies do not send pop-up warnings with a phone number to call, so restart your computer instead of clicking a link or handing over remote access; use unique passwords and multi-factor authentication; and place a security freeze on your credit report. According to FTC data cited at the session, Americans reported losing a record $15.9 billion to fraud and scams in 2025, an all-ages figure that is separate from the FBI's own reporting on losses to adults 60 and older.
Read at HousingWire →Senate Aging Committee hears bankers' testimony on AI-enabled fraud targeting seniors
The U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing on July 29, 2026 on AI-generated fraud targeting older Americans. A witness from the American Bankers Association testified that artificial intelligence is amplifying fraud schemes rather than creating new ones, saying a criminal can now create a convincing fake voice, video, photo, text message, ad, or online persona with little skill or cost. He recommended that Congress create a National Office for Scam and Fraud Prevention to provide accountable national leadership, along with strengthening telecommunications safeguards, improving how fraud information is shared to help recover stolen funds, and modernizing identity and authentication systems. He also noted that banks already use AI, advanced analytics, employee training, and consumer education to help spot suspicious activity. The hearing is a reminder that as scams become more convincing, the same basic defense still works: slow down and verify independently before sending money.
Read at ABA Banking Journal →FBI: older Americans lost nearly $8 billion to scams last year; here's how to protect yourself
The FBI says Americans 60 and older lost nearly $8 billion to scams last year, and ABC11 lays out practical ways to protect yourself: verify any unsolicited call, text, or email independently by going directly to the institution's real website rather than clicking a link or calling a number it provides, and treat any unexpected contact with skepticism even if it looks legitimate. Scammers often use personal details found on social media to sound credible, then work to build trust before asking for money, and increasingly target investment accounts and home equity, not just checking accounts. The core habit that protects you: slow down, verify through a source you look up yourself, and never let anyone rush you into moving money.
Read at ABC11 →IV. Learn More: Puerto Rico Scam Prevention Guides
Explore Puerto Rico-specific guides on the most common scams targeting seniors in your state:
- Tech Support Scams in Puerto Rico — Learn to recognize fake pop-ups, phone calls, and remote access schemes.
- Investment Scams in Puerto Rico — Protect your retirement savings from fraudulent advisors and crypto scams.
- Romance Scams in Puerto Rico — Spot the warning signs of fake online relationships designed to steal money.
- Government Impersonation Scams in Puerto Rico — Know what real government agencies will never ask you to do.
- How to Report Scams in Puerto Rico — Step-by-step guide to reporting fraud and starting recovery.
For national-level data on each scam type, see our Investment, Tech Support, Romance, and Government Impersonation national guides.
See how Puerto Rico compares. Curious where Puerto Rico ranks in the national picture? Stolen Trust, our 2026 special study, ranks every state and territory using five years of FBI data and lays out one practical plan to fix elder fraud.