Scams & Phishing News American consumers are being bombarded with scams

[Brownie2019]

Content source

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/american-consumers-are-being-bombarded-with-scams-063026.html

A new survey finds that victims rarely report the crime​

A new Gallup/Stop Scams Alliance survey finds that one in 10 U.S. adults said someone in their household lost money or gave scammers access to a financial account in 2025.

Nearly half of affected households reported losses exceeding $500, yet only a small minority reported the crime to law enforcement or federal authorities.

The findings suggest Americans overwhelmingly believe government and private companies need to do more to stop scams before they reach consumers.

Americans are facing an onslaught of increasingly sophisticated scams, but most victims never report the crimes to law enforcement, according to a new survey from Gallup and the Stop Scams Alliance.

The nationwide survey found that about one in 10 U.S. adults said they or another member of their household were tricked by scammers in 2025 into losing money or giving criminals access to a financial account. Nearly half of those households reported losing more than $500.

The findings paint a picture of a country inundated by fraud attempts while lacking confidence that reporting scams will make a difference.

According to the survey, many victims chose not to contact authorities because they doubted they would recover their money or were unsure where to report the crime. Only a small share reported scams to local police or federal agencies, although more than half notified their bank or financial institution.

Just part of modern life
The Gallup findings mirror those of a separate Associated Press-NORC poll, which found that scam attempts have become a routine part of daily life for many Americans. More than half of adults said they receive suspicious texts, emails, phone calls, or online messages every day, while older Americans reported the highest rates of daily scam attempts.

The survey also found that scam losses are widespread. About half of the households that fell victim reported losing between $125 and $2,000, and roughly one in 10 adults said they had been scammed multiple times.

No confidence
Despite the prevalence of fraud, Americans expressed little confidence that enough is being done to combat it. According to the Gallup survey, about 80% of respondents believe the federal government is not doing enough to protect consumers from scams. Many also said banks, telecommunications companies, technology firms, and social media platforms should play a larger role in preventing fraudulent communications from reaching consumers.

The Stop Scams Alliance, a nonprofit that advocates public-private cooperation to combat financial fraud, says prevention should become the primary focus. The organization argues that stopping scam calls, texts, and online messages before consumers ever see them would be more effective than relying on victims to recover losses afterward.

 

[Bot]

The “low reporting” finding is unfortunately consistent with what many consumer-protection agencies see: people often assume nothing will happen, or they’re unsure who to tell. Even when money can’t be recovered, reporting still matters because it helps banks, platforms, and law enforcement correlate patterns, take down infrastructure, and warn others.

Why victims often don’t report (and why it’s still worth doing)

• Recovery is uncertain, but fast reporting can improve the odds (especially for bank transfers, wire, Zelle-type transfers, gift cards, and crypto exchanges).
• Reports create data that helps identify scam campaigns, mule accounts, and repeat actors.
• A bank or platform may reimburse only if you notified them quickly and followed their process.

If someone lost money or gave account access: safest order of actions

• Contact the bank/credit card/payment service immediately and ask them to freeze/stop transfers, dispute charges (if applicable), and flag the destination as fraudulent.
• Change passwords for the affected service and your email account (email compromise often leads to further takeovers). Enable MFA (prefer an authenticator app or security key where possible).
• If remote access was granted (AnyDesk/TeamViewer/etc.), disconnect the PC from the internet, uninstall the remote tool, and run reputable on-demand scans. If you suspect broader compromise, back up important files and consider a clean OS reinstall.
• If personal data was shared, place a credit freeze and consider a fraud alert (U.S. bureaus). Monitor accounts and statements closely.

Where to report scams in the U.S. (practical, high-yield reporting)

• FTC (general scams): Report Fraud
• FBI IC3 (internet-enabled fraud, crypto, romance/investment, business email compromise): Home Page - Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
• Identity theft recovery steps: IdentityTheft.gov
• If it involved mail: U.S. Postal Inspection Service: Report – United States Postal Inspection Service
• If it involved IRS impersonation/tax: https://www.irs.gov/privacy-disclosure/report-phishing-and-online-scams
• If it involved Social Security: Office of the Inspector General
• State Attorney General (often effective for patterns in your state): https://www.naag.org/find-my-ag/

A key point the article implies: prevention needs multiple layers
Even if governments and companies improve blocking, individuals still benefit from a few “high impact” habits:

• Treat unexpected urgency + payment pressure as a red flag (especially gift cards, crypto, wire, “bank safe account,” or “refund” scripts).
• Verify using a known-good method: hang up, then call the number on the back of your card or the official website (not a link in the message).
• Use MFA and unique passwords; protect your email account most of all.
• Keep OS/browser updated; avoid installing “support” or “refund” tools from unsolicited contacts.

If this thread is about improving reporting behavior, the most actionable takeaway is: report to your bank/payment provider first (time-critical), then file FTC/IC3 reports so patterns can be linked across victims and institutions.

 

[Halp2001]

Very good article. Although the report focuses on the U.S., we’re seeing digital scams increase year after year in my country as well. It’s clearly a global problem—suspicious messages, scam calls, and financial fraud have become part of everyday life in many places. Hopefully, we’ll see more international cooperation and stronger collaboration between companies to stop these scams before they ever reach users.