Beyond the Financial Basics: Fraud Education Is Key

A friend called me one day and told me how their parents, an 80-year-old couple, almost lost their money to a fraudster. It was scary to hear, but thankfully their financial institution delayed making the transfer and called the police. However, not everyone is always so lucky. 

Scams are on the rise, making fraud education a critical financial topic for everyone. This means becoming informed about the danger of impersonations, wiring money to strangers, scam emails, texts and phone calls asking for gift cards, and more—the list goes on.  

Fortunately, many credit unions are addressing fraud head-on in their education programs. One particularly vulnerable group is elders, and institutions like Jersey Shore Federal Credit Union are holding education workshops with these individuals and their caregivers at senior centers and senior housing locations to offer information on how to protect themselves.  

As another example, Armco Federal Credit Union has multiple media avenues to educate the community and has seen over $700,000 saved in member loss. And in 2026, Members 1st Federal Credit Union won a Leaders in Financial Literacy Award for their work with helping members, especially seniors with fraud prevention. 

The elderly aren’t the only ones susceptible to fraud. Sure, many young people are savvy to the typical scams (including AI videos—I have to ask my children all the time to help me understand what AI is and what is not!). But they don’t all know the various forms of fraud in the financial realm. That’s why such education should be in youth curriculum to better prepare them early. 

This education is also being included in curriculum for adults, especially for vulnerable populations such as those with disabilities. For instance, Credit Union of New Jersey and First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union are in the process of testing tools that are effective in teaching. They have recently formed a group within the CrossState Credit Union Foundation’s Financial Education Collaborative in the hopes of creating best practices for our network. Further, the Foundation is working with the Pennsylvania Treasury Department to develop resources for people with disabilities—and, of course, protection is a big part of that guide. 

This is the credit union way: noticing a gap in education for a vulnerable population and addressing the issue.