KSNF/KODE — Online scams cost Americans a record $10.3 billion in 2022 — and that number is only increasing, according to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center. Scams are up 277% since 2018. Five years ago, reported internet scams cost those in the U.S. $2.7 billion.
The United States led the world with 466,501 online victims in 2022. The United Kingdom, Canada, India, and Australia round out the top five.
The website, Social Catfish (specializing in online consumer safety through proprietary technology) recently released their most recent study on the current “State of Internet Scams.”
The study’s goal, they say, is to offer a comprehensive and real time overview to equip people with the knowledge necessary to avoid becoming the next victim of an online scam.
Whether it’s investment, online shopping, internet dating, or any one of the multitude of scams that are out there — the victims often lose their life savings or worse. Analysts found that a mere 4.2% of lost monetary assets were recovered last year.
States With The Most Online Scams (2022)
The following table is organized by the total amount of money each state lost from online scams in 2022 (including Washington D.C.). To help identify how each of the Four States ranks — Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas and Arkansas are highlighted and underlined.
| STATE | MONEY LOST | VICTIMS | AVERAGE LOSS PER VICTIM |
| 1. California | $2,012,806,866 | 80,766 | $24,921 |
| 2. Florida | $844,972,494 | 42,792 | $19,746 |
| 3. New York | $777,099,358 | 25,112 | $30,945 |
| 4. Texas | $763,140,903 | 38,661 | $19,739 |
| 5. Georgia | $322,638,566 | 13,415 | $24,050 |
| 6. New Jersey | $284,590,029 | 11,793 | $24,132 |
| 7. Illinois | $266,742,489 | 14,786 | $18,040 |
| 8. Pennsylvania | $250,903,241 | 14,714 | $17,052 |
| 9. Alabama | $247,930,058 | 4,893 | $50,670 |
| 10. Arizona | $241,191,959 | 12,112 | $19,913 |
| 11. Washington | $240,923,860 | 12,432 | $19,379 |
| 12. Massachusetts | $226,202,504 | 7,805 | $28,981 |
| 13. Maryland | $217,880,447 | 11,644 | $18,711 |
| 14. Virginia | $205,462,224 | 11,882 | $17,291 |
| 15. Ohio | $180,091,279 | 13,659 | $13,184 |
| 16. Colorado | $178,389,862 | 11,683 | $15,269 |
| 17. Michigan | $177,865,280 | 13,566 | $13,111 |
| 18. North Carolina | $175,454,536 | 10,554 | $16,624 |
| 19. Nevada | $127,315,394 | 9,090 | $14,006 |
| 20. Missouri | $118,365,728 | 7,560 | $15,656 |
| 21. Tennessee | $113,713,897 | 7,161 | $15,879 |
| 22. Oregon | $109,917,253 | 5,516 | $19,926 |
| 23. Wisconsin | $108,909,445 | 7,863 | $13,850 |
| 24. Minnesota | $103,771,677 | 5,845 | $17,753 |
| 25. South Carolina | $100,256,530 | 7,861 | $12,753 |
| 26. Connecticut | $99,937,935 | 4,683 | $21,340 |
| 27. Utah | $98,840,388 | 4,325 | $22,853 |
| 28. Indiana | $73,678,120 | 11,682 | $6,306 |
| 29. Oklahoma | $66,517,159 | 4,148 | $16,035 |
| 30. Kansas | $58,149,297 | 2,399 | $24,238 |
| 31. Kentucky | $57,045,801 | 4,256 | $13,403 |
| 32. Louisiana | $55,696,565 | 4,335 | $12,848 |
| 33. South Dakota | $48,072,730 | 1,691 | $28,428 |
| 34. Arkansas | $46,230,114 | 2,887 | $16,013 |
| 35. Iowa | $42,806,846 | 2,959 | $14,466 |
| 36. Delaware | $40,980,800 | 2,327 | $17,611 |
| 37. Idaho | $40,323,594 | 2,001 | $20,151 |
| 38. Hawaii | $35,776,983 | 1,703 | $21,008 |
| 39. D.C. | $33,668,057 | 2,460 | $13,686 |
| 40. New Mexico | $32,941,959 | 2,589 | $12,723 |
| 41. New Hampshire | $29,322,824 | 1,416 | $20,708 |
| 42. Nebraska | $28,659,814 | 1,957 | $14,644 |
| 43. Mississippi | $28,213,583 | 2,043 | $13,809 |
| 44. Montana | $22,252,737 | 1,170 | $19,019 |
| 45. Rhode Island | $21,827,037 | 1,119 | $19,505 |
| 46. Maine | $21,403,477 | 1,435 | $14,915 |
| 47. West Virginia | $18,200,401 | 1,846 | $9,859 |
| 48. Wyoming | $17,980,141 | 863 | $20,834 |
| 49. Alaska | $16,826,999 | 1,539 | $10,933 |
| 50. Vermont | $15,664,834 | 707 | $22,156 |
| 51. North Dakota | $14,279,199 | 703 | $20,311 |
| 1-in-5 Americans Believe They’ll Never Afford A Home >
The latest data breaks down the numbers behind online scams, and was released this year by the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) and the Federal Trade Commission. Both sets of statistics from 2022 were used in the development of this study.
Complaints And Losses Over The Last Five Years
| YEAR | SCAM COMPLAINTS | SCAM LOSSES |
| 2018 | 351,937 | $2.7 Billion |
| 2019 | 467,361 | $3.5 Billion |
| 2020 | 791,790 | $4.2 Billion |
| 2021 | 847,376 | $6.9 Billion |
| 2022 | 800,944 | $10.3 Billion |
From 2018 to 2022, there have been 3.26 million complaints, totaling $27.6 billion dollars in losses over the five year period. 2022 saw nearly 50,000 less scam complains than the previous year. However, the total dollar amount lost due to online scams, skyrocketed to $10.3 billion from $6.9 billion in 2021. That’s a total increase of $3.4 billion lost by individuals to internet scams in just one year (those numbers only account for the people who were scammed and reported it).
From 2017 to 2022 — money lost to online scams by victims, age 20 and younger, grew nearly 2,500% over the last five years — compared to 805% for seniors. Internet scam victims under the age of 20 lost $8.2 million in 2017, compared to $210 million in 2022. According to the latest data, seniors remain the most victimized by online scams, losing $3.1 billion in 2022. However, the numbers show an increase of younger people falling victim to scammers.
To learn more, you can view the latest “State of Internet Scams” study, HERE.
