U.S. military veterans own majority stakes in more than 1.6 million businesses and represent 5.3% of this country’s business owners, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. Even if you aren’t a veteran, you might employ individuals who’ve served. Employees who suffer fraud losses may be distracted and less productive at work — and the resulting financial pressures can increase your business’s fraud risk.

For these reasons, fraud perpetrated against vets is an especially concerning issue for business owners. Be sure to share the following with your employees and network.

Common threats

A 2025 AARP survey of veterans and active-duty military service members found that 27% of respondents had lost money to fraud. Among those who reported losses, most said they’d lost more than $500. Many victims believe their veteran status made them targets.

One of the greatest threats to vets is “imposter” fraud. In this scheme, a perpetrator calls, emails or texts targets and pretends to be working for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or another government agency. Perpetrators may claim they need personal information to authorize the release of benefits. Instead, they use that data to commit identity theft.

In a variation of this scam, perpetrators pose as financial advisors who convince vets to exchange their pensions for up-front cash payouts. Often, the payouts are worth less than the pensions. Or the fraudulent advisors may tout special benefits programs that can only be accessed by paying a fee. After paying, victims learn the programs don’t exist.

Unfortunately, many other types of fraud focus on vets and active-duty members. These include fake job recruiting, loan, tax and charity schemes. One particularly vicious scam targets family members of deployed military personnel. Criminals claim the military member has been injured or is stranded and that the family must wire money to save their loved one.

In addition, the VA warns about schemes perpetrated by family members and caregivers. The agency says vets should deposit benefit checks only into their own accounts or into those of court-appointed or VA-accredited fiduciaries.

Defensive moves

Whether you’re a veteran business owner or have vets on your payroll, fraud awareness can help identify and prevent schemes. For example, vets should know that if they receive a communication from someone claiming to be a government official, they should offer to contact the person at the agency’s official phone number listed on its website. They should never provide sensitive information — such as Social Security, bank account or credit card numbers — to an unknown caller, emailer or texter until they’ve independently confirmed the person’s identity.

In addition, vets need to:

• Protect accounts with strong passwords, multifactor authentication, password managers and, potentially, fingerprint or facial recognition,
• Apply software updates as soon as they become available,
• Deny social media friend requests from unknown individuals or organizations,
• Avoid phishing schemes by ignoring links or attachments contained in suspicious emails, and
• Regularly monitor credit report content and investigate any sudden drops in credit scores.

Vets should be wary of offers claiming recipients must “act now.” Legitimate organizations understand that people need time to consider and research offers before handing over any money.

Spread the word

This Independence Day, you can celebrate military veterans (and active-duty members) by helping reduce their fraud risk. Contact one of our fraud experts at (888) 388-1040 for more information and assistance spreading the word throughout your organization.

Kari Steinbeisser, CPA, CPE, and Partner comments,

“Many business owners are U.S. military veterans, and many more employ veterans. That’s why scams that target vets are a concern for businesses. One common scheme is “imposter fraud.” Here, criminals pose as government officials or financial advisors to steal money, pensions and personal information. Fraud awareness and cybersecurity training can help foil these and other schemes.”