Little Hoover Commission hearing urges statewide coordination to stop financial scams that target Californians

SACRAMENTO — The Little Hoover Commission on Friday heard experts, industry representatives and prosecutors call for a coordinated California response to growing online financial scams that drain savings from people of all ages, with particularly devastating effects on older and dependent adults.

Donata Bohannick, executive director of the California Elder Justice Coalition, urged lawmakers and regulators to focus on stopping transactions “mid‑process” so “the dollars [do]n’t leave the accounts” and become irretrievable. Bohannick described phone‑based coercion as a high‑pressure interaction that often requires an in‑person or immediate human intervention to break the victim’s compliance.

The commission was told that the schemes now run by transnational networks use a mix of tactics — spoofed phone numbers, coached bank‑branch interactions, courier services and crypto conversions — and that the prevention window is often narrow. “The best way to protect customers from fraud and scams is to prevent criminals from carrying out their schemes in…