FinCEN Advisories: What They Are and What They Ask
What FinCEN's elder financial exploitation advisory and its mail theft-related check fraud alert contain, and what each asks of financial institutions.
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What a FinCEN advisory is and who it is written for
Two FinCEN documents are covered here. One is an advisory on elder financial exploitation. The other is an alert on mail theft-related check fraud. Both are written for financial firms.
What FinCEN's advisory and alert contain
First, the elder advisory defines the threat. FinCEN's advisory defines elder financial exploitation as the illegal or improper use of an older adult's funds, property, or assets. It says an older adult is considered an individual 60 years of age or older.
Second, FinCEN's alert on mail theft-related check fraud gives red flags. FinCEN's alert says its information comes from FinCEN's analysis of BSA data, open-source reporting, and information from law enforcement partners.
Third, the elder advisory gives SAR filing tips. FinCEN's advisory asks financial institutions to include "EFE FIN-2022-A002" in SAR field 2 and mark the check box for elder financial exploitation.
Fourth, both documents point outside the institution. They name agencies to contact. The advisory also names a program that helps victims recover funds.
How advisories differ from FinCEN guidance and FinCEN alerts
FinCEN puts out a few kinds of papers. Each asks something different.
Guidance explains the rules. FinCEN's guidance says people can review a collection of past guidance and administrative rulings for examples of how FinCEN rules apply to specific facts. Guidance answers a question about how a rule works. The FinCEN travel rule page covers one such rule.
An advisory warns about a threat. It says: here is a crime pattern, here is how to spot it, here is how to report it.
FinCEN's alert on mail theft check fraud was issued in close collaboration with the United States Postal Inspection Service. The FinCEN mail theft check fraud alert is covered in depth on its own page.
The elder financial exploitation advisory: a worked example
The elder advisory shows each part.
It defines the threat, as quoted above. It says the COVID-19 pandemic made these vulnerabilities worse for many older adults.
It explains how the crime works. FinCEN's advisory says elder scams are sometimes facilitated through money mules who transfer or move illicit funds at the direction of the scammers.
It also says what its filing tips are. FinCEN's advisory says its SAR filing tips for suspected elder financial exploitation are best practices, not regulatory obligations.
The mail theft-related check fraud alert: how an alert uses the same machinery
The mail theft alert does the same job.
It defines the threat. FinCEN's alert says criminals stealing checks from the mail generally target personal checks, business checks, tax refund checks, and government assistance checks.
It gives red flags. FinCEN's alert says it identified red flags with USPIS to help financial institutions detect and report suspicious activity tied to mail theft check fraud. One is a customer complaining that a check they mailed was never received by the intended recipient. Another is non-characteristic, sudden, abnormal check deposits, often electronic, followed by rapid withdrawal or transfer of funds.
It explains why sharing matters. FinCEN's alert says information sharing among financial institutions is critical to identifying, reporting, and preventing mail theft-related check fraud. It also defines a money mule. FinCEN's alert defines a money mule as a person who transfers or moves illicit funds at the direction of or on behalf of another.
How institutions act on an advisory: SAR filing, information sharing and victim referral
An advisory is only paper until staff act on it. The documents point to three moves.
File the SAR with the key term. FinCEN's advisory says elder financial exploitation investigations are often complex, time-consuming, and time-sensitive.
Share with other firms where the law allows. FinCEN's advisory says institutions sharing information under the section 314(b) safe harbor may share information about suspected terrorist financing or money laundering.
Refer the victim to people who can help. FinCEN's advisory says filers are encouraged to report suspected elder financial exploitation to law enforcement and their state Adult Protective Services. It says financial institutions should report any imminent threat right away. They should tell local law enforcement. It says the Rapid Response Program helps victims and their financial institutions. It helps them recover funds stolen through cyber-enabled fraud against older adults. That program is a partnership between FinCEN and U.S. law enforcement, including the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service. On the check fraud side, FinCEN's alert says financial institutions should refer customers who may be victims of mail theft check fraud to the USPIS to report the incident.
Firms with questions can also ask FinCEN. FinCEN's guidance says financial institutions with questions about compliance with the BSA may contact FinCEN's Resource Center Helpline. More about the bureau itself is on the FinCEN meaning page.