30/07/2026
WE MUST DO MORE TO PROTECT AMERICANS FROM FRAUD
Francine R. Scott
Commissioner, Super District 9
Augusta-Richmond County, Georgia
July 30, 2026
As an elected county commissioner, I represent a diverse mix of residents. My constituents span race, age, gender, and career path. But the one thing that they all have in common is that any one of them could be the next victim of cyberfraud.
I’ve spoken with seniors, working families, veterans, small business owners, and many more who all express the same fears around online fraud and scams. Many know someone who has been targeted. Some have experienced it themselves. Their stories make one thing clear: fraud is a growing threat to our communities.
The numbers back this up. The Richmond County Sheriff’s Department has reported a rise in the number of residents reporting scam phone calls. In 2024, Georgia was the second worst state in the country for fraud, with more than 2,100 reports for every 100,000 residents.
But these scams are not just limited to one state or to one group of individuals. Nearly three-quarters of the country’s adults have claimed to be victimized by an online scam or attack.
These scams run the gamut. They involve fraudulent phone calls like what our residents have been targeted with, deceptive text messages, fake emails, and online messages. And the scammers are targeting any type of currency they can get their hands on, whether it be cash, crypto, gift cards, or more. The type of scam and currency involved may change, but the goal is always to quickly take someone’s money and disappear before they even realize what
happened.
In my district, many seniors have spent their entire adult lives working hard, saving for retirement, and building financial security for their families. And in an instant, all of that can disappear.
The challenging thing about this is that at a local level, we are limited in how well we can address these threats. While we can warn the public how to avoid falling victim, the current nature of our scam crisis makes it difficult to do much more without federal intervention.
The bad actors behind these schemes operate from organized international networks that use advanced technology, artificial intelligence, and sophisticated social engineering techniques to target vulnerable individuals. They’re well-funded criminal enterprises operating out of scam compounds in Southeast Asia. It’s the equivalent of a factory line for fraud.
Stopping this requires multiple stakeholders at the table. The bipartisan TRAPS Act is a good starting point that brings together the public and private sectors to propose solutions to this problem. There are a few solutions that should be top of mind.
First, Congress must streamline the process for reporting scams. Americans should have a centralized place where they can report crimes and receive resources.
Second, they need to increase resources for law enforcement and improve coordination among federal, state, and local agencies. This would strengthen our ability to disrupt criminal operations and prevent future victims.
Finally, Congress must address this problem at the source. That requires leaning on international partnerships to shut down scam centers, as well as utilizing solutions that worked abroad, such as mass text registration in Europe.
Some in Congress have proposed solutions that are more focused on reimbursing victims of scams than on stopping scammers before they can victimize Americans. That’s the wrong approach. And it sends the message to criminals that they won’t be held accountable for their actions.
Protecting Americans from organized financial crime should not be a partisan issue. It is an issue of public trust, economic security, and protecting families. Every dollar stolen through fraud represents years of hard work, retirement savings, college funds, and financial security. The people in my district expect government to respond to
challenges like this with urgency and common sense. Those are reasonable expectations, and they deserve action.
Francine R. Scott
Commissioner, Super District 9
Augusta-Richmond County, Georgia
