Senate Aging Committee to Examine Social Security Impersonation Scam, the #1 Scam in the Country
SSA Commissioner and SSA IG among those testifying about this scheme that resulted in nearly $38 million in reported losses in 2019 The Committee will also release its 2020 Fraud Book outlining the top 10 reported scams
Hearing scheduled for Wednesday, January 29th, at 9:30AM in Dirksen 562. Click HERE to watch live.
Washington, D.C.—Americans reported losing close to $38 million last year to the Social Security scam, a relatively new scheme targeting seniors that has grown at an alarming rate.
In recent years, the scam has skyrocketed to become the most-reported fraud to the Federal Trade Commission and the Aging Committee’s Fraud Hotline. Since creating an online form less than three months ago, the Social Security Administration has received more than 115,000 complaints.
On Wednesday, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Bob Casey (D-PA), the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Aging Committee, will hold a hearing titled, “That’s Not the Government Calling: Protecting Seniors from the Social Security Impersonation Scam.”
The hearing will explore how the Social Security scam operates, explain what is currently being done to address it, and explore what more can be done to stop it. The Committee will also hear from a victim who lost more than $150,000 to this scam.
The Social Security scam generally involves criminals impersonating Social Security staff and calling victims to fraudulently take money from them or obtain their personally identifiable information. In one iteration of this scam, victims are told that their Social Security number has been suspended and that there is a warrant for their arrest. The fraudsters claim they need additional information from victims to verify their identity.
This will be the 25th hearing the Aging Committee has held in the past seven years to examine scams affecting older Americans.
Witnesses for the hearing will include:
- Andrew Saul, Commissioner, Social Security Administration, Washington, D.C.
- Gail Ennis, Inspector General, Social Security Administration, Washington, D.C.
- Machel Andersen, Victim of the Social Security Impersonation Scam, Ogden, UT
- Justin Groshon, Manager, Saco Social Security Office (appearing on behalf of the National Council of Social Security Management Associations), Saco, ME
- Nora Dowd Eisenhower, Executive Director, Mayor’s Commission on Aging, Philadelphia, PA
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