Released: March 31, 2006

Seniors most vulnerable to nest-egg robbers

Source: By Robert Powell, MarketWatch

Older Americans were not born yesterday. But that doesn’t mean retirees and soon-to-be retirees aren’t vulnerable to scam artists intent on separating them from their money with promises of free lunches and guaranteed returns.

In fact, federal regulators and others say older Americans - 10,000 of whom will turn 60 every day over the next 20 years - are perhaps the most vulnerable of all groups to nest-egg robbers. So regulators, lawmakers and consumer advocates are stepping up efforts to protect this group from losing their life’s savings to scoundrels.

The U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging this week held hearings on how seniors can stop investment fraud. And SEC Chairman Christopher Cox last week said the nation’s top stock cop is stepping up efforts to thwart scam artists as well as educate older Americans about investments.

Chief among the SEC’s efforts? The agency, which began collaborating with state and other regulators to identify firms that may be preying on seniors in California, will now turn its attention to Florida, the state with the largest percentage of Americans 65 and older.

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