9 Scams Hitting Virginia Retirees Hardest in 2026

A stranger sits in a parked car outside a Roanoke home, waiting for an elderly man to walk out and hand over an envelope of cash.

The caller who set it up said it was the only way to keep that money safe.

It was the opposite.

These are the scams hitting Virginia retirees hardest right now, and the Federal Trade Commission and the state attorney general keep sounding the alarm about them.

Note: This is general information about spotting fraud, not financial or legal advice. Scammers change their tactics constantly, so the warning signs here are subject to change. When in doubt, contact the company or agency yourself to confirm the information you were given.

1. A Call From Social Security

The scam that empties retirement accounts often opens with a voice claiming to be from the Social Security Administration.

Your number has been suspended, the caller says, or it turned up in a case involving drug smuggling or money laundering.

Then comes the pressure to fix it right now.

Government impostors are one of the biggest impostor categories the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) tracks, and they took $920 million from people in 2025 alone.

Older adults get hit worst, and the money they lose in impersonation scams of $100,000 or more has jumped eight-fold since 2020.

Real agencies mail letters.

The Social Security Administration doesn’t call to threaten arrest, and it never demands payment over the phone, so hang up and call the agency back on a number from your own paperwork.

2. The Safe Account Trap

Another version of the scam comes from a voice claiming to be your bank’s fraud department.

Criminals are draining your account, the caller warns, so you need to move your money to a safe account before it disappears.

Sometimes that means wiring the cash.

Other times it’s buying gold bars, handing an envelope to a courier, or feeding bills into a Bitcoin ATM at a gas station.

Among older adults who lose big to impostors, about one in three send the money as cryptocurrency, the FTC found.

No bank works this way.

A real bank freezes the account and mails you a new card, so any caller telling you to protect your savings by moving them is running the con.

3. The Grandchild Emergency

With the grandchild scam, the caller skips the bank and goes straight for your heart.

The voice on the line is crying and sounds just like a grandchild in trouble.

There’s been an arrest, or a car wreck, or a mess overseas, and the caller needs cash fast and begs you not to tell their parents.

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones warns that these callers invent emergencies like posting bail or getting stuck in a foreign country.

It’s a script.

Hang up, then call your grandchild or their parents on the number you already have, and the whole story falls apart in one ring.

4. The Pop-Up on Your Screen

Not every scam comes by phone. Some show up on your computer screen instead.

A pop-up freezes the screen, blares an alarm, and shows a warning that your machine is infected, with a phone number to call for help.

It’s stamped with a Microsoft or Apple logo to look official.

Call, and a fake technician takes remote control of your computer, then announces that your accounts are compromised and your money has to move to stay safe.

The FTC says older adults lose serious money to these fake pop-ups every year.

Close the tab.

A real error message from Microsoft or Apple never gives you a phone number to call, so shut the browser down and, if it’s stuck, restart the machine.

5. The Online Sweetheart

Some of the costliest scams show up as a brand-new sweetheart.

A warm new friend turns up on Facebook or a dating app, messages every day, and grows close fast, all through a screen.

The video call never quite happens, and the excuses pile up.

Then a crisis lands that only your money can solve, sent by gift card, wire, or cryptocurrency.

Jones puts it plainly: Any love interest who asks for money through gift cards, crypto, or a money transfer is a scammer.

The money gives it away.

Someone who cares about you and won’t show their face on a video call, yet keeps asking for cash, is after your bank balance, not your company.

6. A Prize With a Catch

With the next scam, the caller leads with good news instead of a threat.

You've won a sweepstakes, the call or letter says, maybe a new car or a jackpot worth thousands.

To collect, you just owe a little something first, in taxes or processing fees, paid up front by gift card or wire.

The state attorney general's office flags the sweepstakes scam as a classic, especially the demand for money before any prize appears.

Real prizes are free.

A legitimate sweepstakes never asks you to pay to claim your winnings, so the moment a fee comes up, you're talking to a thief.

7. That Unpaid Toll Text

One of the newest scams reaching retirees fits in a single text message.

It warns that you owe a small unpaid toll, a dollar or two, with a link to settle up before a late fee hits.

Anyone who drives the 495 or 95 Express Lanes reads that and half believes it.

Tap the link, and the scammers behind it grab your card number and personal details.

E-ZPass Virginia says it texts customers only from two numbers, and a message from anything else isn't real.

It's a fake.

Don't tap the link. Open your account through the real app or website, and you'll see there's no toll owed at all.

8. The Power-Shutoff Threat

When the weather turns cold, the scammers lean on a real fear, losing the heat.

A caller claims to be from Dominion Energy and says your power gets cut off within the hour unless you pay your overdue balance now.

Pay right this minute, they insist, by prepaid card or a phone app.

The urgency is the whole game, and the state attorney general lumps these utility impostors in with the rest.

That's the giveaway.

Dominion never threatens a same-day shutoff by phone or takes gift cards, so the safe move is to check your balance in the account you already have.

9. The Can't-Miss Investment

The scam that costs retirees the most doesn't scare them. It flatters them.

It might start as a friendly message on social media, or a wrong-number text that turns into a chat, then a warm rapport.

Weeks in, your new friend shares a can't-miss opportunity in crypto or gold, with a slick app that shows your money growing by the day.

Older adults report losing more money to investment scams than to any other kind of fraud, the FTC found.

Slow down.

Then you try to cash out, and the withdrawal gets blocked behind a surprise fee, then another, until the account and the friend both vanish.