Latest news with #ChristopherMufarrige
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Newest FTC Data Reveals Americans Lost Billions to Fraud in 2024 — Here Were the Most Expensive Scams
Scams and fraud impact millions of people every year, and falling for a scam can mean losing thousands of dollars. Be Aware: Try This: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that in 2024, 2.6 million U.S. consumers reported a whopping $12.5 billion as lost to fraud — a figure 25% higher than in 2023. To protect yourself, it helps to know how to spot a scam. Data from the FTC indicated that the two most damaging types of fraud last year came in the form of investment and imposter scams. Read Next: Investment scams outpaced any other category of fraud targeting U.S. consumers in 2024, with reports of $5.7 billion in losses — an uptick of 24% in total value lost from 2023. These sorts of scams typically see fraudsters enticing victims to invest money into fraudulent assets, and when the transfer is complete, the cash disappears — along with the criminal who defrauded the victim. Imposter scams, on the other hand, accounted for $2.95 billion in losses coming from American checkbooks. These scams involve a fraudster pretending to be someone trustworthy or an authority figure, like a representative of a bank or government. They use this feigned authority and the urgency of dire consequences to convince victims to give them personal information, like a Social Security Number, or send them money. One striking fact: Last year, consumers reported losing more money to scams wherein they paid off the fraudsters with bank transfers or cryptocurrency than all other payment methods combined. And a second: While the FTC took in fraud reports from 2.6 million consumers in 2024 — and that number nearly matches the figure from 2023 — the total sum of money lost was much larger. Further, growth in particular subsets of scams was in evidence. Government imposter scams, a scenario in which a fraudster pretends to be a government official seeking monetary restitution or payment of some sort, saw consumer losses total $789 million, or about $171 million higher than in 2023. Business and job opportunity fraud, where hopefuls might pay false recruiters or hiring agencies for a way into their desired careers, accounted for $750.6 million in losses — up $250 million from 2023's figure. Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said, 'Scammers' tactics are constantly evolving. … The FTC is monitoring those trends closely and working hard to protect the American people from fraud.' The pace of these reports does not appear to be slowing, either. A separate FTC data sheet indicated that for 2025, year-to-date, 75,458 reports of government imposter scams have been recorded. The scammers represent themselves as collecting tolls or representing the Social Security Administration, Medicare or even the FTC themselves. Most payments this year have been made by gift card — never a valid payment method for government-owed debt — and most scammers called their victims via phone. More From GOBankingRates The New Retirement Problem Boomers Are Facing 9 Downsizing Tips for the Middle Class To Save on Monthly Expenses This article originally appeared on Newest FTC Data Reveals Americans Lost Billions to Fraud in 2024 — Here Were the Most Expensive Scams Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Newest FTC Data Reveals Americans Lost Billions to Fraud in 2024 — Here Were the Most Expensive Scams
Scams and fraud impact millions of people every year, and falling for a scam can mean losing thousands of dollars. Be Aware: Try This: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that in 2024, 2.6 million U.S. consumers reported a whopping $12.5 billion as lost to fraud — a figure 25% higher than in 2023. To protect yourself, it helps to know how to spot a scam. Data from the FTC indicated that the two most damaging types of fraud last year came in the form of investment and imposter scams. Read Next: Investment scams outpaced any other category of fraud targeting U.S. consumers in 2024, with reports of $5.7 billion in losses — an uptick of 24% in total value lost from 2023. These sorts of scams typically see fraudsters enticing victims to invest money into fraudulent assets, and when the transfer is complete, the cash disappears — along with the criminal who defrauded the victim. Imposter scams, on the other hand, accounted for $2.95 billion in losses coming from American checkbooks. These scams involve a fraudster pretending to be someone trustworthy or an authority figure, like a representative of a bank or government. They use this feigned authority and the urgency of dire consequences to convince victims to give them personal information, like a Social Security Number, or send them money. One striking fact: Last year, consumers reported losing more money to scams wherein they paid off the fraudsters with bank transfers or cryptocurrency than all other payment methods combined. And a second: While the FTC took in fraud reports from 2.6 million consumers in 2024 — and that number nearly matches the figure from 2023 — the total sum of money lost was much larger. Further, growth in particular subsets of scams was in evidence. Government imposter scams, a scenario in which a fraudster pretends to be a government official seeking monetary restitution or payment of some sort, saw consumer losses total $789 million, or about $171 million higher than in 2023. Business and job opportunity fraud, where hopefuls might pay false recruiters or hiring agencies for a way into their desired careers, accounted for $750.6 million in losses — up $250 million from 2023's figure. Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said, 'Scammers' tactics are constantly evolving. … The FTC is monitoring those trends closely and working hard to protect the American people from fraud.' The pace of these reports does not appear to be slowing, either. A separate FTC data sheet indicated that for 2025, year-to-date, 75,458 reports of government imposter scams have been recorded. The scammers represent themselves as collecting tolls or representing the Social Security Administration, Medicare or even the FTC themselves. Most payments this year have been made by gift card — never a valid payment method for government-owed debt — and most scammers called their victims via phone. More From GOBankingRates Clever Ways To Save Money That Actually Work in 2025 25 Places To Buy a Home If You Want It To Gain Value This article originally appeared on Newest FTC Data Reveals Americans Lost Billions to Fraud in 2024 — Here Were the Most Expensive Scams
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
American Consumers Lost $12.5 Billion to Fraud in 2024
American consumers reported losing more than $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, amounting to a 25% jump from the year before, according to Federal Trade Commission data released Monday. The FTC received 2.6 million reports of fraud last year, which was relatively flat with 2023, but the percentage of people who said they lost money as a result of scams and other kinds of fraud jumped to 38% from 27% the year before. While those numbers may seem staggering, experts say they likely represent just a fraction of actual instances of fraud and losses, because most financial fraud continues to go unreported. Most victims are too ashamed to come forward, or just feel that doing so won't do any good. "The data we're releasing today shows that scammers' tactics are constantly evolving," Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement, adding that the FTC continues to work to monitor fraud trends and protect consumers. The amount of money lost to investment scams jumped 24% percent to $5.7 billion last year, representing the largest amount of fraud by category and significantly outpacing imposter scams, which accounted for $2.95 billion in losses. A significant portion of the imposter scam losses involved government imposter scams, where a cybercriminal will falsely claim to be a representative from a government agency like the IRS, FEMA or a local police department. Those losses jumped 28% to $789 million. The FTC added that it continues to see increases in job and employment scams. Losses related to those have risen from $90 million in 2020 to $501 million in 2024.
