Serving as a Representative Payee (Rep Payee) comes with the important responsibility of managing Social Security or other benefits on behalf of someone who cannot fully manage them alone, whether due to age, disability, mental illness, or other circumstances. Unfortunately, these individuals are also among the most heavily targeted by scammers and fraudsters who specifically target people who receive government benefits and may have limited ability to recognize manipulation. In 2025, almost $21 billion was lost to internet scams and fraud, with older adults being affected the most.

Protecting the money clients depend on in their daily life is crucial, and these tips can help rep payees proactively safeguard those they support from financial fraud and scams.

Understand why your clients are being targeted by fraud

Scammers frequently target people who receive predictable monthly benefits because the income is reliable and the recipients are oftentimes easier to manipulate due to potential cognitive limitations, social isolation, or unfamiliarity with complex financial systems. Common scams can include:

• fake phone calls claiming to be from the Social Security Administration that threaten them with a suspension of benefits
• telemarketing, texting, and phishing scams that impersonate legitimate organizations
• romance scams that build trust over weeks or months before requesting money
• fraudulent charities or lottery schemes that claim a prize is won or convince victims to send money with the promise of a payout
• AI-enabled scams that use artificial intelligence to make attacks more convincing, harder to detect, and easier to carry out at scale

Work to limit who has access to client account information

Scammers often need some piece of financial information, like an account number, a Social Security number, or a bank routing number, to carry out their scams and that information can be obtained directly from the client through manipulation rather than through the account itself. 

-Have a conversation with your client, to the extent they're able to engage, about staying safe and never sharing account numbers, PINs, or personal identifying information over the phone or via email, even if the caller claims to be from a government agency or bank. 

-Remind them that legitimate agencies do not call demanding immediate payment or threatening arrest, so reinforcing this simple fact often can help a client recognize red flags when they are presented with a situation.. 

Fraudsters can also use information from social media and other public profiles to make their pitches more convincing, so it’s helpful to encourage clients to be thoughtful about what is posted online like: travel plans, family members' names, current locations, or financial milestones.

Keep any eye out for any behavioral changes, not just financial ones

Fraud can often show up first in unusual behavior rather than in spending activity. A client who becomes secretive about phone calls, mentions a new friend or acquaintance who's asked to borrow money, seems increasingly anxious about answering calls from unknown numbers, or talks about unfamiliar financial opportunities may be in the middle of being actively targeted by scammers. Paying close attention to these behavioral shifts in real time allows for earlier intervention, sometimes before any money actually changes hands. Setting spending alerts for client accounts can also make it easier to track transactions and spot potentially suspicious activity.

Read more: Common Challenges as a Rep Payee and Strategies to Address Them

Create a regular routine for reviewing account activity

A regular, scheduled review, weekly or biweekly, depending on the complexity of the client's finances makes it far more likely that fraudulent activity can be caught ahead of time before any irreversible damage occurs. This review can include checking for unfamiliar transactions and any new recurring charges or spending that wasn’t authorized. True Link can also help you stay ahead of potential financial scams with built-in fraud protection that blocks unwanted transactions before they take place. Regular reviews make it easier to notice smaller-scale fraud that can fly under the radar and can go undetected for months, but can add up quickly.

Educate your clients about fraud without overwhelming them

While financial literacy support is not an official part of a rep payee’s role, the SSA does encourage rep payees to help beneficiaries in additional ways, like:

• helping establish a budget
• involving them as much as possible in financial decisions
• explaining Social Security or SSI payments and their expenses
• negotiating with landlords and creditors to get favorable terms

Offering small, repeatable messages, like "hang up and call me immediately if anyone should ask you for money over the phone" or "make sure to never give out any account numbers over the phone" are often more effective than one-time talks about fraud prevention. Repetition, delivered patiently and without judgment can help build a solid financial literacy foundation and show up in real, beneficial habits over time.

Know how to respond and who to notify if fraud occurs

Despite best efforts, fraud sometimes can happen anyway, and having a plan ready if it does matters just as much as prevention. This includes knowing how to report suspected fraud to the bank immediately, filing a report with the Federal Trade Commission, notifying the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov or local law enforcement when appropriate, and notifying the Social Security Administration if benefit funds were specifically targeted. Acting quickly can sometimes limit losses, and having already-established relationships with the client's bank and benefit agency before a crisis occurs can make the response faster and less stressful. 

Combining routine safeguards, consistent education, and attentiveness to behavioral changes gives rep payees a greater chance of helping safeguard against fraud or preventing it altogether, while helping preserve the trust and dignity of the people they support.

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How True Link Helps Representative Payees

True Link offers rep payees an alternative to checks, cash, and other prepaid cards with an easy, reliable way to send clients money online. Our easy-to-use dashboard helps you replace time-consuming processes and track spending, upload receipts, download reports, pay bills on behalf of clients, and more, all in one place.

Learn more at https://www.truelinkfinancial.com/rep-payee-professional

This article is not intended to provide investment, tax, or legal advice. Before making decisions involving investing, legal, tax or accounting concerns, you should consult appropriate professionals regarding your specific situation.

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