Research · Updated 30 September 2026
Online scam statistics 2026
The latest official numbers on online fraud, from the FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report and the Federal Trade Commission's 2025 consumer data, with a focus on the scams that hit people buying and selling online. Every figure links to its source.
lost to internet crime reported to the FBI in 2025, a 26% increase on 2024 [1]
complaints received by the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center in 2025 [1]
in fraud losses reported to the FTC in 2025, from 3 million fraud reports [2]
of people who reported losing money to a scam in 2025 said it started on social media [3]
lost to scams that started on social media in 2025, an eightfold increase since 2020 [3]
lost to non-payment and non-delivery scams (56,478 complaints) reported to the FBI in 2025 [1]
The big picture: internet crime in 2025
Two US agencies publish the most complete public numbers on online fraud. They count different things (the FBI counts complaints to its Internet Crime Complaint Center, the FTC counts consumer fraud reports), so their totals should not be added together.
| Losses reported to the FBI (IC3), 2025 | $20.877 billion | [1] |
| Increase in IC3 losses compared with 2024 | 26% | [1] |
| Complaints received by IC3, 2025 | 1,008,597 | [1] |
| Average loss per IC3 complaint, 2025 | $20,699 | [1] |
| Fraud losses reported to the FTC, 2025 | $15.9 billion | [2] |
| Fraud reports received by the FTC, 2025 | 3 million | [2] |
| FTC fraud reports and losses, 2024 (for comparison) | 2.6 million reports, over $12 billion | [2] |
Buying and selling online: when the money or the goods never arrive
Non-payment and non-delivery is the FBI's category for the two classic marketplace failures: the buyer pays and receives nothing, or the seller hands something over and is never paid.
Impersonation: fake banks, fake platforms, fake officials
Imposter scams have been the most reported type of fraud to the FTC every year since 2020. According to the FTC, some of the costliest start with a fake security alert, often from a bank, that convinces people to move money to 'protect' it.
| Losses to imposter scams reported to the FTC, 2025 | $3.5 billion | [4] |
| Share of FTC fraud reports that were about imposter scams | Nearly one in three | [4] |
| Reported losses to business impersonators, 2025 | Nearly $1 billion (bank impersonators highest) | [4] |
| Reported losses to government impersonators, 2025 | About $920 million (up from $866 million in 2024) | [4] |
Who is hit, and the newest tools
Reported losses rise with every age group in the FBI data, and the 2025 IC3 report includes a section on artificial intelligence used in cybercrime.
What the numbers mean if you buy or sell online
Most of these losses come from the same few moves: pay first and hope, hand over first and hope, or trust a link someone else sent. When you buy or sell a YouTube channel, a Telegram channel, a website or a digital product:
Never be the one who goes first without protection
Non-payment and non-delivery are the same problem seen from two sides. An escrow service holds the buyer's payment while the buyer checks the transfer, so neither side has to trust a stranger first.
Treat payment screenshots as worthless
A screenshot or a 'payment sent' email proves nothing. Only hand over an asset when the money is confirmed by the escrow service or has actually arrived.
Avoid payment methods that can be reversed or cannot be traced
Some payments can be clawed back weeks after a handover, and others can never be recovered once sent. Agree the payment route before anything is transferred.
Type the escrow site's address yourself
Lookalike escrow websites are a common trick. Do not follow a link to an escrow service that the other person sends you.
Check what the platform's own rules allow
YouTube channels, Telegram channels and domain names each move in a different way, and the platform's rules decide what the buyer actually receives. Confirm the transfer method before paying.
Put the deal in writing
A short written agreement listing the asset, the price and the transfer steps makes a dispute far easier to resolve.
Frequently asked questions
How much money was lost to online scams in 2025?
People reported losing $20.877 billion to internet crime in complaints to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center in 2025, a 26% increase on 2024. Separately, consumers reported $15.9 billion in fraud losses to the Federal Trade Commission. The two figures come from different reporting systems and should not be added together.
What share of scams start on social media?
According to the FTC, nearly 30% of people who reported losing money to a scam in 2025 said it started on social media, and reported losses from those scams reached $2.1 billion, an eightfold increase since 2020.
How common are non-payment and non-delivery scams?
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center received 56,478 non-payment and non-delivery complaints in 2025, with reported losses of $503,373,587.
Are these numbers complete?
No. They only count scams that people chose to report, and many victims never report. The real totals are almost certainly higher.
Sources and method
All figures are taken directly from the publications below and cover the United States. They only count scams that people reported, so the real totals are higher. The FBI and FTC use separate reporting systems, so their totals overlap and should not be added together.
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 IC3 Annual Report (Internet Crime Report) (2026).
- Federal Trade Commission, FTC testimony on the rising scam economy (2025 fraud data) (25 March 2026).
- Federal Trade Commission, New FTC data show people have lost billions to social media scams (27 April 2026).
- Federal Trade Commission, FTC data show people reported losing $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025 (15 June 2026).
Cite or link to this page
You are welcome to use these statistics. Please credit the original sources above and link back to this page.
Citation
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Scams that start on social media
Social media is now one of the most common places where a scam begins, whether it is an ad for something that never arrives, a fake investment group or a stranger who builds trust first.