The Next Lesson in Financial Education

By now, students across Michigan are back in the classroom and families are settling into the routines of a new school year. There’s always something energizing about this time of year, when new lessons, goals and opportunities are being set into motion. And, of course, the smell of fresh pencils and back-to-school shopping!   

It’s the kind of season that naturally puts learning top of mind, and it got me thinking about the role credit unions play in financial education. Credit unions help members understand how to create a budget, establish credit, save for a home and prepare for retirement. While year over year, credit unions put a lot of resources and education of their team into the financial coaching bucket, we also know that the burden to protect what our members have built is becoming heavier and heavier.   

The excess weight is the result of the rampant fraud we are seeing across all channels.  Education has evolved from not just the actual education on how to build wealth, but also what members need to do to protect it from scammers as well. Credit unions certainly don’t need me to tell them that fraud has become a more significant part of serving members. Teams across Michigan are dealing with it every day — watching for new threats, protecting accounts and stepping in when something goes wrong. It takes a lot of time, attention and investment, and I know teams are constantly being asked to do more as fraudsters find new ways to target members. 

It’s easy to see why this has become such a big focus. Federal Reserve research released this year found that one in five U.S. adults experienced financial fraud or a scam in 2024. The Federal Trade Commission received 3 million consumer fraud reports in 2025, with reported losses totaling $15.9 billion. Imposter scams alone accounted for $3.5 billion in reported losses, and financial institution impersonators generated the highest losses among business impersonation scams. 

What makes many of today’s scams so difficult is that criminals are not always trying to break into an account. Often, they’re trying to convince the person who owns it to do the work for them. It might be a text saying there’s suspicious activity on an account, a phone call that appears to come from a trusted institution or someone claiming to be a family member who needs money right away. And as many of us know too well, evolving technology has made those attempts appear remarkably convincing.  Even the most targeted and sophisticated member education will not stop this type of fraud in every instance.  

More than two-thirds of financial institutions have seen an increase in this kind of fraud, according to Velera. The encouraging part is that there is something we can do about it. Because these scams rely on someone being convinced to act, education, while challenging,  can be a powerful part of prevention. Helping members know when to pause, ask a question and contact their credit union before sending money or sharing information can make all the difference.  What is the equivalent of “stop, drop and roll” when it comes to cyber scams?  AARP has come up with an awareness campaincampaign for cyber scams – Pause. Reflect. Protect.  [https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/pause-reflect-protect/]. I think this is great!  

Education, of course, is only one part of the answer. Even the most informed member can be targeted by a sophisticated scheme, which is why continued investment in fraud-prevention technology remains just as important. We are seeing those tools evolve in some important ways through some of our partners, like Rippleshot and Illuma. Rippleshot uses machine learning and predictive analytics to help credit unions spot compromised debit and credit cards, identify emerging fraud patterns and get a better sense of where card risk may be building. Illuma uses real-time voice authentication and AI-assisted fraud detection to help credit unions confirm that callers are who they say they are, while adding protection against threats like voice cloning and deepfakes. 

The best strategy will undoubtedly be a combination of tools like these and member education. The good news is that credit unions don’t have to create every educational resource on their own. Last week, the American Association of Credit Union Leagues launched a complimentary Cybersecurity Awareness Toolkit with customizable content, social-media materials, branch posters, staff talking points and member handouts that credit unions can use throughout the year. I hope credit unions will take a look at the toolkit and find ways to work it into their member-education efforts. 

Fraud will continue to evolve, and credit unions will continue to combat it. . By pairing strong technology with consistent, practical member education, we can give members more tools to protect themselves and more confidence that their credit union is there when they need it. 

Thanks for reading. 

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