U.S. adults lost a record-setting $10 billion due to fraud in 2023.
New Federal Trade Commission data revealed that roughly 690,000 people had been tricked through various means by fraudsters, compared to 624,000 people who were scammed out of approximately $8.9 billion the year before. Imposter, investment, lottery, business, and healthcare scams claimed much of the total, with the majority of reports being imposter scams.
Investment scams, though comprising a much smaller number, claimed the single highest amount of money taken through fraud, at over $1.1 billion.
Business imposter scams, in which fraudsters imitate popular, legitimate businesses, rose 18% in 2023 compared to 2022.
The majority of scams coming from foreign countries originated in Canada and the United Kingdom, followed by China, India, and Australia.
Fraud also varied in size and method by generation — while the 30-39 demographic contained the highest per capita number of fraud reports, those 80 and over demographic lost the most by a long shot, despite fewer being targeted.
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“Romance scams” claimed a significant total among the 40-49, 50-59, and 60-69 demographics while generating almost no significant amount among the 20-29 demographic.
Investment scams claimed the top spot among all age demographics, with the singular exception of 80 and over, who were mostly fooled by scams involving prizes, sweepstakes, and lotteries.
