Aspen Institute Launches New Initiative To Combat The Nation’s Growing Scam Epidemic

The Aspen Institute’s Financial Security Program has announced a significant new initiative designed to address what many now view as one of the most pressing consumer protection challenges facing the United States: the explosion of fraud and scams targeting American consumers.

The newly launched Scam Prevention Initiative builds upon the work of the Aspen Institute’s National Task Force on Fraud and Scam Prevention and reflects an increasingly broad consensus that scams can no longer be viewed solely as an issue for consumers or financial institutions to solve on their own. Rather, scams have evolved into a systemic problem requiring coordinated action by financial institutions, technology companies, retailers, telecommunications providers, law enforcement agencies, policymakers, and consumer advocates.

According to the Aspen Institute, fraud and scams have become a “national security and financial crisis,” with criminals stealing more than $3 billion every week from Americans in 2025 alone. The Institute notes that seniors, veterans, and other vulnerable populations continue to suffer disproportionate harm, although consumers of all ages are increasingly becoming victims. The growing use of artificial intelligence by scammers has further intensified concerns by enabling criminals to create increasingly sophisticated and convincing fraud schemes.

A Multi-Sector Response

The Aspen initiative is noteworthy because of the breadth of organizations participating in the effort. The Leadership Group on Scam Prevention includes representatives from across the financial services, technology, retail, and consumer advocacy sectors. Participating organizations reportedly include such companies and organizations as Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, JPMorgan Chase, PayPal, Walmart, Target, the American Bankers Association, AARP, and Zelle, among others.

This diverse coalition reflects an important reality: modern scams often span multiple industries and platforms. A consumer may first encounter a scam on social media, communicate with the fraudster through text messaging or email, transfer funds through a payment application or bank account, and purchase gift cards at a retail establishment, all as part of a single fraudulent scheme. No single company or industry has sufficient visibility to disrupt the entire scam lifecycle.

Focus on Prevention Rather Than After-the-Fact Remediation

A particularly important aspect of the Aspen effort is its emphasis on prevention. Historically, anti-fraud efforts have often focused on reimbursement, liability allocation, and post-loss recovery. While these issues remain important, the Aspen initiative seeks to identify ways to prevent scams from occurring in the first place.

The initiative identifies several priorities, including:

• Convening public and private sector leaders around a focused action agenda;
• Developing better data to measure the true scale of scams and identify effective interventions;
• Advancing practical solutions to prevent and disrupt scam activity;
• Supporting partnerships that facilitate cross-sector collaboration;
• Building momentum for policy and industry action; and
• Increasing public awareness regarding scam risks and prevention strategies.

The initiative also plans to establish “Solutions Forums” that will bring together technical experts to develop and implement specific anti-scam measures.

Implications for Financial Institutions

For banks, credit unions, fintech companies, and payment providers, the Aspen initiative underscores the potential value for firms in moving beyond traditional fraud controls and participating in broader ecosystem-wide efforts to combat scams.

Financial institutions already face mounting pressure from regulators, legislators, and consumer advocates regarding authorized push payment scams and other fraud losses. At the same time, institutions often argue that they cannot effectively combat scams without greater cooperation from technology platforms, telecommunications providers, and retailers where scams frequently originate.

The Aspen initiative’s cross-sector model may provide a framework for developing common standards, information-sharing protocols, and coordinated interventions that could improve outcomes for consumers while clarifying the respective roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders.

Whether the initiative ultimately leads to specific legislative or regulatory proposals remains to be seen. However, given the bipartisan concern surrounding scams and the substantial financial losses suffered by consumers each year, policymakers are likely to closely monitor the initiative’s work.

As scams continue to grow in sophistication and scale, particularly with the increasing use of AI-enabled fraud techniques, the Aspen Institute’s initiative represents an important acknowledgment that combating scams will require a coordinated, whole-of-ecosystem response rather than isolated efforts by individual institutions.

The consumer financial services industry should watch these developments closely.