WASHINGTON -- Fraud is bad enough, but when you have family members or caregivers who are financially abusing their elderly relatives or patients, that's downright despicable.

And yet, in most of the cases of elder financial abuse, the perpetrators are not strangers. Family, friends, neighbors and caregivers are the culprits in 55 percent of the cases, according to a report, "Broken Trust: Elders, Family, and Finances, " released by the MetLife Mature Market Institute. The report was produced in conjunction with the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse and Virginia Tech University.

Law enforcement and securities officials say the recession is pushing more people to steal from well-off seniors.

"There is definitely more fraud than there has been," said Fred Joseph, Colorado securities commissioner and president of the North American Securities Administrators Association. "Elder financial abuse is becoming the crime of the 21st century as the growing senior population is increasingly targeted."

The annual financial loss by victims of elder financial abuse is estimated to be at least $2.6 billion, according to the report. The average victim of elder abuse is a woman over 75 who lives alone.

It's not surprising that the more health issues seniors have, the more likely they will be victimized. As I searched media reports of abuse for just this year, I found numerous cases where family members and caregivers took advantage of seniors with dementia.

A nursing assistant from the state of Washington was charged with stealing more than $770,000 from the elderly woman she was caring for.

In a Florida case, a man called authorities to report his 80-year-old mother's hairdresser had stolen her checks. The stylist was accused of taking $25,000 from the woman's checking account. But get this. During the investigation, police charged the victim's 52-year-old son -- who first alerted police -- with fraudulently cashing $6,900 in checks from his mentally incompetent mother.

Last month in Virginia, a home health caregiver was sentenced to six months in jail for taking $15,000 from an 85-year-old woman suffering from dementia. The victim was bed-ridden.

The financial abuse of seniors has become so prevalent that the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) and the National Adult Protective Services Association recently united to develop tips and strategies to protect them.

"A silent crime is taking its toll on America -- silent because so many of these cases go unreported," said Kathleen Quinn, executive director of the protective services association. "This announcement is the first step in a partnership we hope will grow to close the gap on elder abuse."

Elder financial abuse can happen in a number of ways, according to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse:

-- Forging an older person's signature.

-- Getting a senior to sign a deed, will, or power of attorney through deception, coercion, or undue influence.

-- Using the elder person's property or possessions without permission.

-- Promising lifelong care in exchange for money or property and not following through on the promise.

-- Making charges against victims' credit cards without authorization. Continued...