Business
Scammers Are Sending Couriers to Collect Cash and Gold From Older Adults. How the Scheme Works
By Curtis Jones · October 21, 2026
The call or pop-up usually starts with something ordinary: a warning about suspicious activity on an account, or a virus on your computer. By the end, a stranger is standing at your door to collect your savings in cash or gold bars, and you have been told it is for your own protection.
Federal agencies have been warning about this scheme for more than two years, and the losses remain large. In its 2025 Internet Crime Report, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center counted about 725 complaints about gold courier scams with $311.8 million in losses. On October 19, the Federal Trade Commission told Congress that fraud losses reported by people 60 and older rose from about $600 million in 2020 to about $3 billion in 2025.
Here is how the scam typically unfolds, based on descriptions from the FBI and FTC.
The scare. An FTC alert describes a call that begins with a routine problem, like suspicious activity in an Amazon account, that quickly turns serious. You are told someone is using your information to commit crimes and all your money is at risk.
The handoff. The FBI says scammers often pose, in turn, as a tech company, your bank, and a government official. FBI Boston described cases where a fake helpdesk claimed to find illegal material on a victim’s computer, passed the victim to a fake bank employee, and then to someone posing as an FTC or Justice Department representative.
The “protection” plan. To keep your money safe, they say, you must turn it into cash or buy gold, silver, or other precious metals. The FBI’s public service announcement on the scheme says some victims are told to wire money to a metals dealer who ships the gold to their home.
The courier. Someone comes to your home or a public place to pick it up. The FBI says scammers may give you a passcode, such as the serial number on a dollar bill, to confirm the courier is legitimate. Victims are promised the money will be held in a protected account. The FBI says they never hear from the scammers again.
The FTC points to a few moments where you can catch it. If a caller tells you to go to the bank in person while they stay on the phone, to visit a cryptocurrency ATM, or to buy gift cards, that is a scammer. If they tell you to lie to the bank teller about why you are withdrawing money, that is a scammer too.
The rule to remember is short. The FTC’s guide to government impersonation scams says the agency will never tell you to transfer your money to “protect it” or to withdraw cash or buy gold and give it to someone. The FBI says the same about the U.S. government and legitimate businesses.
What to do if this happens to you or a parent.
Stop and hang up. Don’t call back a number from a pop-up, text, or email. Look up the bank or agency’s number yourself.
Tell someone you trust. The FTC suggests telling a person you trust what happened, then reporting it.
Never share your address or agree to meet. The FBI warns against arranging to hand off cash or metals to anyone.
Report it. File with the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. People 60 and older who need help filing can call the Justice Department’s Elder Justice Hotline at 1-833-372-8311, according to the FBI.
This article is for general information only and is not legal or financial advice. If you think you have been targeted, contact your bank directly using a number you know is real, and report it to the FBI and FTC. This article was produced with the assistance of AI and fact-checked against the sources cited by LightWave Reports.