U.S. Senator Rick Scott is calling on Congress to pass a series of bills designed to crack down on fraudsters exploiting American citizens through cybercrime and financial scams. The legislative push comes amid broader federal efforts by the Trump administration to combat fraud across the country.
The legislative package targets both individual scammers and foreign entities that exploit U.S. financial systems.
“Whether it’s in the form of phone calls or sophisticated cybercrime, scammers are running rampant through our country,” Senator Rick Scott said. “Criminals are weaponizing new technologies like artificial intelligence to swindle Americans out of their life savings. These criminals must be stopped and held accountable. These bills will go a long way to turn the tide on the scam epidemic. These are all commonsense solutions to a glaring problem; let’s get to work.”
The legislative package includes four distinct pieces of legislation:
The Strengthening Targeting of Organized Predatory Scammers (STOP Scammers) Act directs the Secretary of the Treasury to designate foreign fraudulent groups as “Foreign Financial Threat Organizations.” This designation would trigger asset freezes and restrictions similar to those used against global terrorist organizations.
The Secure America’s Finance Exchanges (SAFE) Act mandates that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforce specific disclosure rules for Chinese-based firms attempting to launch Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) on American financial exchanges.
The Trusted Foreign Auditing Act requires Chinese corporations to employ independent auditors that are completely free from Chinese Communist Party (CCP) control, aiming to safeguard U.S. investors and capital.
The ReportScams.gov Act establishes a single, centralized online portal for Americans to report fraudulent activity and receive direct assistance after being targeted by scammers.
This legislative effort follows an annual fraud report issued by Scott in his role as Chairman of the Special Committee on Aging. The report revealed that financial scams, particularly those utilizing artificial intelligence, cost American senior citizens more than $4.8 billion in 2024.
Currently, federal fraud reporting is fragmented, with victims’ reports scattered across 13 different federal agencies. Advocates state this lack of a unified strategy leaves victims confused about where to turn for help. In response to these findings, Scott and a group of lawmakers sent a formal letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, and U.S. Secret Service Director Sean Curran, urging their agencies to coordinate and dismantle the foreign networks driving international scams.
The proposed financial regulations build upon Scott’s previous legislative actions regarding foreign market influence. In April 2025, the senator introduced a package of bills intended to close existing sanction loopholes and enforce stricter disclosure transparency to prevent U.S. capital from benefiting CCP-linked operations.
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