LEBANON, Tenn. - TelAve -- Cybersmarts.ai is calling on consumers, financial institutions, telecommunications providers, and businesses handling personal information to place greater emphasis on preventing fraud before money leaves an account—not simply responding after a victim reports a loss.

The announcement renews warnings issued by Troy Williams, PhD, known as The AI PI™, in public releases published in March 2024 and March 2025 addressing financial fraud, identity protection, cybercrime, and threats to America's economic security.

"Americans spend decades building their savings, retirement, and financial independence," Williams said. "Protecting those assets requires more than a warning after something goes wrong. Families need practical safeguards, and the institutions handling their money and information must carry their share of the responsibility."

What Verified 2026 Reporting Shows

Data compromises continued during 2026. The Identity Theft Resource Center tracked 1,803 publicly reported data compromises during the first six months of 2026, including 387 in financial services and 281 in healthcare. Its estimated 471.2 million victim notices must not be interpreted as that many unique Americans: people can receive multiple notices, and the largest incident included affected individuals whose U.S. count was not confirmed.

Impersonation losses extend into 2026. A September 17, 2026, FBI advisory reported nearly 61,000 complaints involving law-enforcement or government impersonation, with losses exceeding $1.6 billion, during January 2025 through July 2026. The advisory described criminals using authentic-looking telephone numbers, real employee names, fabricated credentials, and AI-assisted video appearances.

Annual reporting released in 2026 documents the broader financial damage. The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report, released April 6, 2026, recorded 1,008,597 complaints and nearly $21 billion in reported losses. Adults over 60 reported approximately $7.7 billion in losses. The report also identified 22,364 AI-related complaints involving nearly $893 million.

Separately, the FTC's March 2026 congressional testimony reported $15.9 billion in consumer-reported fraud losses during 2025, including $7.9 billion attributed to investment scams.

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Reporting clarification: These figures have different reporting periods and collection methods. FBI and FTC totals may overlap and should not be added together. AI-related figures are not additional to the overall FBI total. Full-year 2026 losses are not yet available, and reported complaints do not capture every victim.

"These numbers are not interchangeable, and accuracy matters," Williams said. "But the message is clear: personal information and financial assets deserve active protection, not assumptions."

Overseas Fraud Can Depend on Domestic Participants

A recent conviction illustrates why fraud investigations must examine more than the person making the telephone call.

On October 5, 2026, a federal jury in Austin convicted Bhavesh Kumar Thakkar on offenses related to wire fraud and money laundering. Trial evidence established his role as a U.S.-based coordinator receiving and laundering cash and gold obtained from older victims by India-based call-center scammers. The Justice Department connected him to more than $150 million in fraud proceeds.

Williams said the case demonstrates the importance of tracing separate participants, including callers, couriers, domestic recipients, and financial intermediaries.

"An overseas caller may depend on someone operating inside the United States to collect or move the proceeds," Williams said. "Follow the evidence wherever it leads. Accountability belongs to the individuals and organizations whose conduct can be established—not to an entire nationality."

Corporate Accountability Must Match Consumer Responsibility

Williams is urging organizations to make prevention easier to understand, activate, and evaluate.

For banks and investment firms, his priorities include clearer money-transfer controls, meaningful account-change alerts, stronger verification of unusual payment instructions, and accessible fraud-response procedures.

For telecommunications providers and online platforms, he advocates stronger scrutiny of customers distributing suspected fraudulent traffic, timely action against confirmed impersonation, and preservation of relevant records through appropriate processes.

For healthcare organizations, data brokers, and other businesses handling personal information, he calls for collecting less unnecessary data, limiting retention, verifying vendor security, and clearly explaining how information is shared.

"Consumers cannot inspect a company's systems from a waiting room or banking app," Williams said. "They deserve understandable answers about what is collected, who receives it, how it is protected, and what happens when protection fails."

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Four Protective Actions Americans Can Take Now

1. Protect new credit and existing accounts separately.
Place free security freezes with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, and review credit reports for unfamiliar activity. A freeze helps restrict new-credit access; it does not prevent takeover of an existing bank or investment account.

2. Strengthen account access and notifications.
Use unique passwords and multifactor authentication. Enable available alerts for logins, changed contact information, new linked accounts, and transfers of money or securities. Ask the institution which controls are available rather than assuming every account has the same safeguards.

3. Verify unexpected requests independently.
End an unexpected call involving urgent payments, threats, or requests for sensitive information. Contact the organization through an established app or a telephone number obtained independently. A familiar number, employee name, or convincing video is not sufficient verification.

4. Reduce unnecessary exposure of personal and payment information.
Review people-search listings and use available opt-out procedures, understanding that information can reappear and public records remain accessible. For online purchases, ask an existing credit-card issuer about virtual card numbers, including merchant-specific options where available. These reduce particular exposures; they do not establish that a seller is honest.

If fraud is suspected, contact the affected bank, investment firm, or payment provider immediately. Ask whether the transaction can be stopped, recalled, or disputed, and preserve messages, receipts, and transaction details. Recovery cannot be guaranteed, but victims should not let embarrassment delay seeking assistance.

A Repeatable Response: P.A.U.S.E.

Williams's community education emphasizes P.A.U.S.E.: pause the interaction, ask for independent proof, use a trusted communication channel, speak with someone independent of the request, and execute nothing until verification is complete.

The method complements—not replaces—device security, financial safeguards, professional investigation, and appropriate reporting.

"Protecting America includes protecting the families whose savings support our communities," Williams said. "Do not wait for missing money to discover what safeguards were available. Complete one protective action today, then help someone you care about do the same."

About Cybersmarts.ai

Cybersmarts.ai's public education, led by Troy Williams, PhD, focuses on cybersecurity, fraud prevention, identity protection, and informed consumer decisions. Its advisories emphasize practical actions, independent verification, and reducing risk before financial or personal harm occurs.

https://www.cybersmarts.ai