Shaheen Urges Global Response to Overseas Scam Compounds Costing Americans $12B+ Yearly
This Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing segment features Ranking Member Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) opening remarks on the rise of overseas scam compounds that traffic workers to perpetrate sophisticated online fraud against Americans. She highlights $12+ billion in annual U.S. losses and over $100 billion globally, provides two New Hampshire victim examples (a 78-year-old losing $150k to fake investments and another losing $6,200 on a nonexistent car), notes scams targeting the state's E-ZPass system, and stresses links to transnational criminal organizations, corruption, and national security risks. Shaheen argues law enforcement alone is insufficient and calls for diplomacy, victim support, sanctions, and international cooperation; she touts the bipartisan SCAM Act (with Sen. Chris Coons) that passed the Senate unanimously to institutionalize a coordinated U.S. response. The remarks reference administration actions elevating scam compounds as a national security priority, including sanctions and prosecutions. Witnesses were thanked but not quoted here. The throughline frames the issue as a growing transnational threat requiring more than domestic policing, with a poster visualizing the $12B loss figure.
Source: Forbes Breaking News
