By Isha Mehta
Today, World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the Elder Justice Coordinating Council launches its Never Ever Campaign, a nationwide effort aimed at raising awareness about impostor scams. Running through June 26, the campaign brings together government agencies, financial institutions and community organizations around a shared goal: helping consumers, especially older adults, recognize scams before they lead to financial loss.
Impostor scams are among the most common forms of fraud. In 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received more than 1 million reports of impostor scams, amounting to $3.5 billion in losses.
These scams rely on deception and a false sense of urgency to manipulate individuals into sending money or disclosing sensitive information. Scammers often impersonate trusted entities such as government agencies, financial institutions, businesses and other legitimate organizations. They typically use convincing narratives and increasingly sophisticated tactics, including spoofed phone numbers, deepfake audio and video, fraudulent websites and official-looking credentials to gain victims’ trust.
The Never Ever Campaign cuts through the lies and manipulation scammers use to gain trust and create a false sense of urgency. Its core message is simple: When someone asks you to do something a legitimate organization would never ask of you, that is a red flag. For example, a government agency will never ask someone to move their money to a “safe” account, demand immediate payment through gift cards or cryptocurrency, or threaten to suspend benefits without following established legal procedures.
To support outreach, the Elder Justiice Coordination Council has developed a comprehensive suite of free, ready-to-use materials that organizations can quickly deploy. The toolkit includes newsletter and blog content, social media messaging, customizable graphics, website banners, infographics as well as radio and video scripts along with an optional metrics tracker to help measure engagement.
For banks, the Never Ever Campaign offers an opportunity to amplify existing fraud prevention efforts while participating in a coordinated, national initiative. By sharing campaign materials, educating frontline staff about common scam indicators and encouraging conversations with customers, financial institutions can help reduce the success rate of these schemes.
Participation in the campaign is designed to be simple and flexible, allowing institutions to integrate messaging into existing communications including newsletters, branch signage, websites and social media. Consistent information across trusted sources is critical for consumers, as repetition helps build familiarity with scam red flags and encourages people to pause before responding to suspicious requests.
As the threat of scams continues to evolve, efforts such as the Never Ever Campaign highlight the importance of collaboration in addressing fraud at scale. By participating, banks can help ensure that more consumers understand what legitimate organizations will never do, and that they are better prepared to recognize and avoid fraud.
To access the resources, visit aba.com/imposterscams.
Isha Mehta is the community engagement intern at the ABA Foundation.
