WASHINGTON – Pop-up ads may be annoying and pornography may be obscene, but senior citizens have more pressing worries on the Internet – fraud and identity theft.

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Larry Craig of Idaho listened to testimony from various law enforcement agencies and Internet experts Tuesday at a hearing of the Special Committee on Aging. While the panelists disagreed as to the extent seniors are susceptible to fraud, they all agreed more action needed to be taken.

“State securities regulators are deeply concerned that a perfect storm for investment fraud is brewing and our nation’s 35 million seniors are most at risk,” said Tanya Solov, the securities director for Illinois.

Solov said the most common scams to defraud seniors are opportunities to invest in phony startup companies involving technological or medical advancement, such as curing cancer. Others play off economic fears and innuendo, offering can’t-miss deals in real estate and foreign investments.

Howard Beales, director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, disagreed. While people reporting Internet fraud has increased greatly – 166,000 in 2003 as compared to 78,000 in 2001 – seniors accounted for only 6 percent of Internet fraud complaints. Most “fraudsters” do not have specific demographic targets, Beales said.

Jeffrey Groover was in a unique position to confirm the skill level and lack of discretion of most fraudsters – he is serving a 46-month sentence in federal prison for stealing credit information from numerous people, including New York Mets co-owner Nelson Doubleday. Groover said he only got caught because of his unwillingness to relocate away from his ex-wife and children. The process of finding out a victim’s credit information itself was easy.

“All I needed was your name and the approximate area where you lived,” Groover said, “and in a few hours I could obtain your full name, your address, your date of birth, your Social Security number, your wife’s name, your previous address and any vehicles or property that you owned.”

After using that information to apply for a credit card in his victim’s name, Groover would then get a credit report and tap into the victim’s bank account, he said.

But new fraud techniques require even less effort on the part of their operators. Seniors are especially susceptible to “phishing,” or using e-mail to lure victims to official-looking sites and enter private information, according to David Jevans, chairman of the Anti-Phishing Working Group.

“Those 65 and older are the fastest growing group online,” Jevans said. “These consumers are new to the Internet and as such, not educated about the new dangers of phishing fraud.”

And seniors have the most to lose, according to Jevans. People over the age of 50 control 70 percent of the nation’s household net worth, and will control $10 trillion in assets over the next 10 years, he said. In addition, many seniors have good credit ratings, allowing phishers to bilk them for greater amounts.

All panelists agreed increased awareness of fraud is as important as catching fraudsters. After the hearing, Craig announced an initiative to educate members of Congress and their aides about Internet fraud and identity theft. The members and aides would then be able to pass their knowledge on to constituents.