Note to retirees: Beware the family.

Financial swindles are one of the fastest-growing forms of abuse of the elderly. By some estimates, as many as 5 million senior citizens are victimized each year, says Sara Aravanis, director of the nonprofit National Center on Elder Abuse, which provides information to federal and state policymakers. Because of the problem’s spread, “many states have laws authorizing financial institutions to report suspicions of elderly abuse,” says Bruce Jay Baker, general counsel for the Illinois Bankers Association. Earlier this summer, the Securities and Exchange Commission hosted a seniors summit to highlight the issue, with SEC Chairman Christopher Cox noting that protecting seniors’ pocketbooks “is one of the most important issues of our time.”