Objective: In 2023, the damage caused by “special fraud’’ will amount to approximately US$285 million in Japan, with a marked increase in the number of victims among the older population aged 65 and over, who account for about 86.6% of the total. “Special fraud’’ is a crime in which suspects phone victims and pretend to be police officers, victims’ family members, etc. to have victims transfer cash to the suspects’ bank account. In other cases, a suspect visits a victim’s house after such a phone call and directly receives the victim’s cash and/or cash cards. The purpose of this study is to clarify the factors that contribute to fraud victimization among the elderly and to strengthen measures to prevent victimization.

Methods: The subjects of the analysis were 840 residents of Arakawa Ward, Tokyo, aged 65 years or older, who participated in the Arakawa 65 Years and Older Survey or the Arakawa 85 Years and Older Survey. Data on participants’ fraud experiences, level of caregiving, living environment, and various psychological measures, including the Fraud Vulnerability Score (SVS), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), the Resilience Scale (RS), the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) were collected. Multiple logistic regression was used to explore the relationship between these factors and fraud victimization, adjusting for age, gender, level of caregiving, and living situation.

Results: Fraud victims (n = 37) and non-victims (n = 803) differed significantly in terms of SVS and SWLS. Fraud victims had higher fraud vulnerability scores and higher life satisfaction. Logistic regression analysis confirmed that higher SVS and SWLS were significantly associated with a higher likelihood of experiencing fraud (SVS OR = 0.799, CI: 0.720 – 0.887, p < 0.001; SWLS OR = 0.928, CI: 0.870 – 0.989, p = 0.(022).

Conclusion: Given that fraud victimization is correlated with fraud vulnerability and high life satisfaction, it is critical for older adults and their caregivers to implement strategies aimed at reducing fraud risk. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions that address the unique vulnerabilities of the urban elderly population.