What makes someone vulnerable to a scam?

Many people assume scams only happen to people who are uninformed, careless, or less tech-savvy. But what if the real attack surface isn't technology at all?

What if it's trust?

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Tracy Hall—author, advocate, and survivor of one of Australia's most notorious romance fraud cases. After losing her life savings to a professional con artist who spent eighteen months building trust and creating a false identity, Tracy transformed her experience into a mission to educate, advocate, and drive change.

Together, they explore how manipulation works, why intelligence alone doesn't protect us from scams, the dangers of victim-blaming, and what organizations, governments, and individuals can do to build scam resilience in an increasingly digital world.

This conversation goes beyond romance fraud. It's about the psychology of trust, the human side of scams, and why resilience, not fear, is one of our most powerful defenses.

• How professional scammers build trust over time
• Why scams are fundamentally about manipulation, not technology
• The "long con" and how criminals create believable worlds
• Why intelligent, successful people can become scam victims
• The role of vulnerability, life transitions, and emotional context
• Tracy's journey from victim to advocate
• The impact of victim-blaming on reporting and recovery
• The importance of lived experience in shaping scam prevention strategies
• How organizations can improve scam awareness and education
• Why trust has become the new attack surface

Tracy Hall is an author, speaker, scam awareness advocate, and survivor of one of Australia's most high-profile romance fraud cases. Following the publication of her book, The Last Victim, Tracy has become a leading voice in scam awareness, victim advocacy, and consumer education, working with organizations, governments, and communities around the world to improve understanding of scams and fraud.

And in a world where trust has become the attack surface, awareness alone isn't enough—we need scam resilience.

• Learn more about Tracy Hall and The Last Victim: https://a.co/d/08gE6hm4
• Connect with Tracy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracyhall1975/

About the Host

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

Charles discusses the "paradox of modern banking", how digital transaction networks fail to capture age-based vulnerabilities or notice when an elderly person's life savings are systematically bled dry through discount retail stores and unauthorized credit accounts. From the devastating isolation tactics used to separate his mother from her family to discovering a trail of prior victims left by the very predator hired to protect her, Charles explains why the financial industry must shift away from administrative silos and move toward behavioral, real-time transaction monitoring.

We also explore the gaps in standard Adult Protective Services investigations and why Charles believes banks need to give families better collaborative dashboard tools to monitor and protect generational wealth before it’s too late.

A link to the book: https://www.amazon.com/Caregivers-Game-Unraveling-Financial-Dementia/dp/B0G322349C

About the Host

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet sits down with fraud researcher and professor David Maimon to unpack some of the most alarming scam trends emerging today,  from abandoned identity fraud and synthetic identities to AI-powered romance and investment scams.

They discuss how criminals are targeting former immigrants, children, and deceased individuals whose identities are no longer actively monitored, and how those identities are being sold and exploited for loans, bank accounts, and fraud rings.

The conversation also dives into a disturbing evolution in romance and investment scams: criminals are no longer just stealing victims’ savings, they are strategically targeting people with strong credit profiles and home equity to maximize returns through HELOC fraud and investment manipulation.

Finally, Ayelet and David explore how AI is beginning to automate scam operations at scale, including experiments with conversational AI agents capable of running fully automated “pig butchering” investment scams.

• Abandoned identities and identity reuse fraud
• Synthetic identity marketplaces on Telegram
• Romance scams evolving into large-scale financial exploitation
• HELOC targeting and victim profiling
• AI-powered scam conversations and agentic AI
• DeepSeek guardrail concerns
• The future of fraud prevention and scam mitigation

David Maimon is a cybercrime researcher focused on fraud ecosystems, financial crime, identity fraud, and online scam operations. His work explores how criminals operate across Telegram, darknet forums, and emerging AI systems to scale fraud operations. David is a Professor at Georgia State University and Head of Fraud Insights at SentiLink

Listen now and stay ahead of the latest scam tactics shaping the future of fraud.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-maimon-29343632/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

From his early days as a park ranger to leading fraud prevention at Capital One, Jamie shares why fighting scams today requires a shift toward prevention before manipulation happens and not just stopping payments after the fact.

• Scams are not just fraud—they’re social engineering at scale
• Impact spans all age groups and all financial products
• The real opportunity is moving “left of boom”—before money moves
• Stopping scams requires collaboration across banks, telecom, and tech
• Data sharing is essential—but still limited by policy
• Treating people as victims (not mistakes) is critical to progress

About the Host

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder of RangersAI and host of Scam Rangers, where she brings together leaders across industries to tackle the human side of scams—combining fraud expertise, psychology, and real-world prevention strategies.

• Global Anti-Scam Alliance https://gasa.org/
• National Elder Fraud Coordination Center - https://www.fightelderfraud.org/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

Scams don’t start with transactions. They start with trust.

In this episode of ScamRangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Amy Nofziger, Senior Director of Fraud Victim Support at the AARP Fraud Watch Network, to explore the human side of scams, and what’s changed over the past two decades.

Amy and her team receive ~450 calls a day from victims and concerned individuals. And what they’re seeing is clear:

The losses are bigger. The manipulation is deeper. And the emotional impact is often devastating.

This conversation dives into:

• Why scams are fundamentally human problems, not just fraud problems
• How criminals exploit trust, emotion, and purpose
• The rise of long-term relationship scams and financial grooming
• What victims actually need and why trauma-informed support matters
• How awareness, reporting, and collaboration are finally starting to shift the tide

• AARP Fraud Watch Network (main resource):
  https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/
• Fraud Watch Network Helpline (call support):
  https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/helpline/
• AARP BankSafe (for financial institutions):
  https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/banksafe/

Amy Nofziger leads fraud victim support at AARP’s Fraud Watch Network, where she has spent over two decades helping individuals navigate the aftermath of scams. She oversees a national helpline, volunteers, and programs focused on education, prevention, and recovery.

If you’re in a financial institution, fintech, or fraud prevention role, this episode will change how you think about scams.

👉 Share this episode with your team
👉 Start thinking earlier in the scam journey
👉 And help shift the industry toward prevention

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Rebecca Rose from the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General to unpack the reality of scams today, and why they are far more than just a financial problem.

Scams have evolved into highly coordinated, psychologically-driven attacks designed to manipulate people in moments of fear, urgency, and trust. Rebecca shares how government imposter scams work, why they continue to grow, and the patterns behind them, including the now well-known “4 P’s”: person, problem or prize, pressure, and payment.

We also explore the growing sophistication of scams, from long, multi-stage attacks designed to drain victims over time, to impersonation across social media and digital channels. Most importantly, we discuss the emotional and psychological toll scams leave behind, and why prevention, education, and awareness are more critical than ever.

This conversation highlights the mission behind Slam the Scam, a nationwide initiative to raise awareness and empower individuals to recognize scams before it’s too late.

Because by the time someone reaches the point of payment… the damage has often already begun.

• Social Security Administration Scam Resource Page
  https://www.ssa.gov/scams
  (Learn how to recognize and report scams, and protect your identity)
• Report a Scam to SSA OIG
  https://oig.ssa.gov/report
  (Report suspected Social Security-related scams)
• Slam the Scam Day (SSA OIG Initiative)
  https://oig.ssa.gov/scam
  (National awareness campaign to combat scams)
• FTC Scam Reporting & Data
  https://reportfraud.ftc.gov
  (Report scams and explore trends)
• Identity Theft & Scam Resources
  https://www.identitytheft.gov
• AARP Fraud Watch Network
  https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud
  (Hotline and education resources mentioned in the episode)

Rebecca Rose: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebexrose/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet speaks with Ari Redbord, Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs and former U.S. Department of Justice prosecutor, about the rise of crypto investment scams and the global infrastructure behind them.

They break down why these scams are growing so quickly, how financial grooming works in the crypto era, and what makes these schemes so effective at scale. Ari shares insights into blockchain intelligence, how investigators trace illicit funds, and why recovery remains so difficult once money moves.

The conversation expands to the broader ecosystem—organized criminal networks, human trafficking, and the increasing role of AI in supercharging scams. They also explore what governments, law enforcement, and the private sector are doing to respond—and where gaps still exist.

• Why crypto investment scams are accelerating globally
• Financial grooming and the evolution of scam tactics
• How blockchain tracing works—and its limitations
• The scale of the global scam economy
• Organized crime, scam compounds, and human trafficking
• AI’s role in making scams more sophisticated
• Real-time disruption and public-private collaboration
• Challenges in fund recovery and victim restitutionhttps://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/chairman-prince-group-indicted-operating-cambodian-forced-labor-scam-compounds-engaged

Ari Redbord is the Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs, a blockchain intelligence company working with law enforcement, regulators, and financial institutions to detect and prevent illicit activity in crypto. He previously served as a prosecutor at the U.S. Department of Justice and held roles at the U.S. Treasury focused on financial crime and national security.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ari-redbord/

Resources:

Beacon Network (public-private collaboration initiative) - https://www.trmlabs.com/beacon-network

TRM Talks - https://www.trmlabs.com/resources/trm-talks/tracing-a-romance-scam-a-survivors-story-and-the-investigation-behind-it

Chairman of Prince Group Indicted for Operating Cambodian Forced Labor Scam Compounds Engaged in Cryptocurrency Fraud Schemes: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/chairman-prince-group-indicted-operating-cambodian-forced-labor-scam-compounds-engaged

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin speaks with Nils Mueller, Director of the North America Chapter of the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and former USAID Foreign Service Officer.

Nils shares his unique path into the world of scam prevention after spending more than two decades working in international development and governance. During his time in Southeast Asia, he witnessed the rapid rise of industrial-scale scam operations run from organized crime compounds that target victims around the world.

Together, Ayelet and Nils discuss how these scam compounds emerged, the human trafficking behind many of these operations, and why online scams have become a national security issue for governments. They also explore how global cooperation between governments, civil society, and the private sector can help disrupt these networks and protect consumers.

• How scam compounds in Southeast Asia evolved from casino infrastructure into large-scale global fraud operations
• The human trafficking behind many scam operations and how workers are recruited into these compounds
• Why scams have become a national security and economic threat, costing billions each year
• The role of international collaboration, sanctions, and law enforcement in disrupting organized scam networks
• How the Global Anti-Scam Alliance is bringing together governments, companies, and advocates to coordinate the fight against scams

Nils Mueller is the Director of the North America Chapter of the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and a former Foreign Service Officer with USAID. Over a 20-year career, he worked across Africa and Southeast Asia on governance, anti-corruption, and development initiatives.

During his posting in Thailand, Nils became deeply involved in understanding and addressing the rise of scam compounds and the human trafficking networks connected to them.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nils-m-mueller/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin joins Kate Griffin, Director of Inclusive Finance at the Aspen Institute, to discuss the monumental work of the National Task Force on Fraud and Scam Prevention. Over the past year, Griffin has led a diverse coalition of 80 institutions, ranging from financial giants like JPMorgan Chase and Capital One to tech leaders like Google, Meta, and Apple, to develop a unified strategy against the global scam epidemic.

Griffin pulls back the curtain on the "ambitiously pragmatic" approach required to bring competitors and government agencies to the same table. She explores the delicate balance of inclusive finance, explaining how fraud prevention measures can inadvertently create barriers for low-income households. The conversation covers the task force's strategic decision to bypass the "blame game" of liability to focus on immediate prevention, the role of cross-sector information sharing, and the emergence of the Southeast Asian Scam Center Strike Force. This episode provides a high-level look at how policy, private sector action, and human values are converging to dismantle the business model of modern scammers.

• The "Yes And" Moment: Griffin highlights that while progress in private sector investment and government policy is worth celebrating, the fight requires sustained, concerted action across the entire scam lifecycle.
• Neutral Facilitation: The Aspen Institute’s role as a neutral third party allowed for "hard conversations" between sectors like telcos and banks that often point fingers at one another.
• Bipartisan Momentum: Fraud has become a rare point of total bipartisan agreement in Washington; the scammers "do not ask who you voted for," leading to the creation of the Stop Scams Caucus in Congress.
• The Scam Lifecycle Framework: The task force’s recommendations are organized around the scam lifecycle, focusing on suppressing activity, disrupting infrastructure, and empowering victims through better response and support.
• Pragmatic Policy: The episode details how the task force's work influenced the U.S.’s first-ever national strategy for financial inclusion and continues to brief Capitol Hill on drafting future anti-scam legislation.

For more information about the task force visit: https://fraudtaskforce.aspeninstitute.org/

Read the national strategy document: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/671a80aa4a84f2359ce4d360/t/690e1fe9c5c80642162575a5/1762533353206/FraudTFReport_Digital_Final+%282%29.pdf

Follow Kate Griffin on LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/katedgriffin/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

Fraud prevention is often framed as a battle against criminals, but what happens to the customer along the way?

In this episode of Scam Rangers, host Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Marti DeLiema, a researcher at the University of Minnesota, to explore the human impact of scam prevention and fraud interventions and the unintended consequences that can emerge when protection efforts aren’t designed with empathy and care.

While fraud teams work tirelessly to stop money from flowing to criminals, this conversation shines a light on what happens after an intervention is triggered: how customers experience account restrictions, investigations, and confrontational moments and how those experiences shape trust, retention, and long-term relationships.

This episode is a must-listen not only for fraud and frontline teams, but also for digital banking, customer experience, marketing, growth, and retention leaders who may not always see what happens on the fraud front lines, yet own the customer relationship that follows.

• Why scam prevention is a cross-functional customer experience moment, not just a fraud decision
• How well-intended interventions can make victims feel blamed, criminalized, or pushed away
• The emotional impact of scam prevention on individuals and families
• How trust, dignity, and autonomy factor into fraud decisions
• Why the way institutions intervene can influence attrition and long-term loyalty
• What digital, CX, and marketing teams need to understand about fraud moments they don’t always see

Marti DeLiema
Marti DeLiema is an Assistant Professor and Gerontologist at the University of Minnesotawhose. Her work focuses on aging, financial exploitation, scams, and the human impact of fraud prevention efforts. Her research examines how individuals experience fraud interventions and what institutions can do to protect people while preserving trust and dignity.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/marti-deliema-95323535/

Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.

Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.

Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/