The phone calls come in voices that either soothe fear or instill fear.
These include information that appears to be from a banking or government agency with the authority to give the message significance.
However, both are types of communication intended to provoke a “please give me money” response. And they work.
The North American Securities Administrators Association reported that state financial regulators conducted more than 8,800 investigations in 2024, resulting in more than $259 million in fines and restitution.
However, this pales in comparison to the number of reported fraud cases.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, residents of Washington state alone reported 15,600 fraud incidents in the first nine months of 2025, with total reported losses amounting to approximately $86 million.
“There's a lot of fraud out there,” said Faith Anderson, assistant director of securities at the Washington Department of Financial Institutions. “And there are a lot of scams that have been reinvented with new technology through the use of AI and cryptocurrencies.
“They're very smart in how they build trust with people.”
And contrary to conventional wisdom, older adults were not the most frequent drinking group. Approximately 57% of those who reported being scammed were under the age of 19.
Locally, a woman in her 20s fell victim to jury duty fraud in late November, ultimately losing $7,000 and exposing her personal information to potential identity theft, according to the Spokane County Sheriff's Office.
Scammers often target older adults, with approximately 27% of incidents reported by people over 80 years old. The average loss was highest for the oldest group, with an average loss of $2,750, while the average loss for the youngest group was $120, according to the FTC.
And most of those scams involved callers posing as government employees.
One of the most popular recent scams in Spokane County has been alleging violation of jury duty, the lieutenant said. Spokane County Sheriff's Office Spokesman Mark Gregory said.
Callers are usually told they have failed jury duty and will be fined. The whistleblowers then claimed they needed to pay immediately because lawmakers were trying to arrest them for neglecting their civic duties.
“We never call you and say we have a warrant and we’re coming to pick you up,” Gregory said. “We can't keep people in jail for major crimes, let alone miss out on jury duty and parking tickets.”
Scammers try to unbalance people's common sense.
“Most people who end up in this problem have never been in it, never dealt with the court system, so they have no clue,” he says. “Then all of a sudden they skipped jury duty.
“There was a military member who felt terrible. He had been in the military for a long time, and he was worried about what his friends would think if they found out he skipped jury duty,” Gregory said. “When people feel fear, they are less able to handle situations.”
One of the hooks used is when the scammer creates an emergency situation and instructs the victim to keep calling, eliminating any potential way for the victim to check on the situation.
“They're very convincing,” Gregory said of the scammers. “People have told me they were targeted at 5 p.m. even though they knew the office (where they could verify the threat) was closed.”
A few years ago, Gregory was given a scammer's phone number and called someone who claimed to work for the same sheriff's office as Gregory.
“He had a Southern accent. I said, 'You don't work for the sheriff's office.' He said, 'Let's meet in front of the Public Safety Building.' Let's see who goes to jail. ”He then transferred me to his “deputy.” I asked, “Who is the sheriff?” He replied, “That's privileged information.” Can't release it. It sounded legit. ”
Anderson said many of the scammers appear to be from overseas.
“We just want people to be cautious and aware,” she says. “Before you hand over money to someone you have no business with, stop and do some research.”
Although it can be difficult to recover lost funds, especially if the call comes from outside the country, state regulators and law enforcement still hope victims come forward.
“Being informed can help protect yourself from these scams,” Anderson said.
Also, scammers aren't just targeting phones. Much of the contact happens through text messages and social media.
Anderson said personal losses reported by Washington residents range from about $600 to up to $700,000.
“Investment scams often ask for a small amount of money to establish trust,” she says.
Once a victim hands over a small amount of money to a fictitious company, the scammer informs them that the investment is profitable and encourages them to donate more.
“When you say, 'I want to withdraw my profits,' they say you can't do it because there's a tax issue or you have to pay extra fees,” Anderson said. “Eventually, they stop contacting you. That's when the victim knows they were the target of a scam.”
Anderson said anyone with questions should regularly check the Department of Financial Institutions' Financial Fraud Tracker. The names of shell companies used in reported scams are continuously updated.
If someone you don't know asks you for money, she says you should stop and contact or look up the company's name.
“I don't want to see Washingtonians scammed out of their hard-earned money,” Anderson said.
Gregory said he, too, is struggling with the best way to warn residents about potential fraud risks.
“I remember one guy lost $40,000 to an Apple iTunes card. Cryptocurrency is really big now,” he said.
He noted that Spokane County does not accept payments from PayPal, Venmo or any form of cryptocurrency. Therefore, such payment demands should raise red flags for consumers who are told they need to pay.
“No matter what, they need to stop and know that immediacy is not the issue,” Gregory said. “We're not going to arrest you with a fine or anything like that.”
One scam involves knowing the victim's credit union before the victim calls.
“You will receive a call saying that fraudulent activity has been detected on your account. Please give us your password so that we can recover the fraudulently taken money,” he said. “So you gave them the keys to your account.”
Another method is called “grandparent fraud.” The scammer gets the family's name and calls the grandparents.
“They say, 'We are with your grandchildren,' and they have names,” Gregory said. “They created a state of emergency by saying, 'They got into an accident and we searched their car and found drugs.' 'If you send us $1,500, we can save you the trouble of filing a report and let them go.'”
Another scam is based on someone checking publicly available information from prison.
“I called and spoke to a woman. She had a family member who had been arrested for drunk driving,” Gregory said. “They (scammers) provide some information. They call and say, 'Hey, your sister was arrested for DUI. We'd like to release you on home supervision, but that costs $1,500. If you pay now, we can release you tonight.'”
Victims think they are being helped.
“But they say, ‘We have to do it now.’ That’s the biggest thing,” Gregory said. “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
Questions should arise if the message from the source appears different in any way and demands immediate payment, he said.
Victims “are so scared their brains shut down, and people are vindictive. They really are,” Gregory said of scammers. “It doesn't matter if it's a government agency or a company. Stop and examine it.”
Anyone with questions should not accept to verify numbers or websites from callers seeking funds. Potential victims should do their own investigation.
“Stop, hang up, and ask for a number you know,” Gregory said. “It will save you a lot of money.”
