The Aspen Institute Financial Security Program (Aspen FSP) announced the launch of the Scam Prevention Initiative, a new effort focused on “advancing practical solutions and driving coordinated action to reduce the scale and severity of scams affecting Americans.”
Americans are estimated to lose nearly $200 billion each year to scams, making this one of the most significant and fastest-growing threats to household financial security. These losses are driven by sophisticated criminal enterprises, often operating across borders and exploiting gaps between industries, platforms, and enforcement systems.
Through its initial National Task Force on Fraud and Scam Prevention in 2024-2025, Aspen FSP helped convene more than 80 institutions and 300 experts to develop a national strategy for preventing scams. That growing alignment across sectors is now reflected in heightened attention from the White House, federal agencies, Congress, and the private sector.
Building on this foundation, the Initiative will focus on improving how scams are measured and understood, strengthening collaboration across government, industry, law enforcement, and consumer advocacy, and advancing practical tools to prevent scams before they cause harm.
“Fraud and scams are a shared threat, and they require a shared response,” said Kate Griffin, Director of the Scam Prevention Initiative at Aspen FSP. “Over the past two years, Aspen FSP has helped align government, industry, and advocates around a common strategy. The Scam Prevention Initiative turns that momentum into action by bringing leaders across sectors together to tackle a problem no organization can solve alone and to build a safer, more trusted financial system for American households.”
At the center of the Initiative is the newly established Leadership Group on Scam Prevention, which brings together leaders from across the scam prevention ecosystem, including the financial services, technology, retail, and consumer advocacy sectors. Participating organizations include Apple, AARP, American Bankers Association (ABA), Amazon, Block, Inc., Capital One, Citizens Financial Group, Gen, Google, JPMorganChase, Match Group, Microsoft, PayPal, Target, Walmart, and Zelle.
In addition to the Leadership Group, the Initiative will convene issue-specific forums that bring together technical experts, law enforcement officials, consumer advocates, policymakers, and industry practitioners to address key operational, technological, and policy challenges related to scam prevention. Over the next few years, the Initiative says it will focus on:
- Building a clearer picture of the scam landscape by improving how scams are measured, tracked, and understood across sectors
- Convening leaders across industry, government, and civil society to align on priorities and measure progress against shared goals
- Advancing information-sharing and practical solutions that build on existing investments, help organizations prevent scams, disrupt criminal activity, and better protect consumers
- Ensuring scam prevention remains a sustained national priority among business leaders and policymakers
To learn more, visit scamprevention.aspeninstitute.org.
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