The COVID-19 pandemic saw a rise in reports of scammers pretending to be from government agencies. While reports slowed since peaking in early 2021, victims lost more than twice as much money, according to new research by Better Business Bureau® (BBB®). BBB warns people to use caution if they are contacted by a government agency demanding money or offering a government grant for a fee. After BBB published an in-depth study in 2020 to educate the public about how to detect Government Impostor Scams, reports to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) soared. In 2021, consumers reported losses of more than $445 million in government impostor and government grant scams, up from $175.4 million reported in 2020.Likewise, BBB Scam Tracker data showed victims of government grant scams lost more money in 2021 than in the previous year. This type of scam is one of the top 10 riskiest scams reported to Scam Tracker, according to the 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report. Scam Tracker reports also showed
The numbers are in. The Federal Trade Commission released its annual compendium of fraud reports from last year, and the news is shocking. Over the past three years, reported losses to consumer fraud has tripled, coming in at a reported $5.9 billion in 2021.
Nearly six million US consumers reported a scam last year and the median loss was $500. But the FTC can only tell us about fraud that was reported – we know the losses and number of victims is far higher.
Many factors contribute to under-reporting, including the abundant shame victims feel. This has to change, and it starts with how we talk about fraud victims. Let’s all commit to help change the current narrative that suggests it’s the victim’s fault – she was duped, he was swindled, they fell for it. Focus instead on the crime and the criminal. Let’s ease the emotional burden while making it clear that fraud is a crime and we need our lawmakers and criminal justice sys