Brett Blackman, 43, of Johnson County, Kansas, was sentenced to 19 years in prison on October 14, 2026, for running a software platform that produced fake doctors’ orders for medical braces. The platform billed Medicare and other federal health programs more than $1 billion, and more than $450 million of that was paid. The braces…

A stolen Social Security number does not automatically earn a new one. Social Security says it may assign a new number, but only after the person whose number was misused has done everything possible to fix the damage. Even then the word is “may,” and the agency does not promise a fresh start. The rule…

Freezing a credit report costs nothing, and it does not lower a credit score. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says people can freeze and unfreeze their credit records for free at the three nationwide credit reporting companies, which are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The CFPB adds that security freezes do not impact credit scores in…

The FBI is warning that scammers are using the 2026 midterm elections to collect money through fake political action committees, or PACs. Its Internet Crime Complaint Center issued the alert on October 15, 2026. The public service announcement, titled “Scammers Exploit 2026 U.S. Midterm Election to Perpetrate Multiple Fraud Schemes,” describes four separate pitches, ranging…

SNAP benefits that criminals steal by skimming or cloning an EBT card are no longer replaced with federal money when the theft happened after December 20, 2024. Congress let that authority lapse on that date, and the Agriculture Department’s page on stolen benefits, updated September 8, 2026, shows no extension. Households hit now cannot count…

Federal Trade Commission staff are warning that scammers and dishonest businesses sometimes pay to land at the top of search results while Medicare and Marketplace open enrollment is under way. A person who types “Medicare plans” into a search box and taps the first result may not end up at the government. The warning, in…

Vice President JD Vance is asking officials at every level of government to sign a pledge to stop fraud before the money goes out, the White House said Oct. 16. Vance leads the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, and the announcement lists governors, cabinet secretaries, state auditors, U.S. attorneys and members of Congress…

Michigan’s insurance regulator and health department are warning older adults that Medicare open enrollment, which runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, 2026, is a busy season for scammers. The warning names unsolicited phone calls and mailers that look like government communications, including a postcard claiming to be from Medicare. Both are described as scams.…

Marco Santarelli, the former CEO of Norada Capital Management, was sentenced on October 15 to 33 months in federal prison for running a promissory note scheme that cost investors about $63 million. A judge also ordered him to pay $63,165,357 in restitution. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California says more than…

Medicare open enrollment began October 15, and Michigan regulators are already warning that scammers are working it by phone, at the front door and through the mail. The Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services and the state health department say the federal Medicare agency will never call or send someone to a person’s home.…