Online shopping tops the FTC’s list of 2023 scams

(InvestigateTV) — The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received more than 2.4 million reports of scams and fraud in 2022.

FTC Senior Data Researcher Emma Fletcher shared the list of the top scams her agency examined in 2023:

Online shopping:

“These are scams where people order something online,” Fletcher said. “Perhaps after clicking on social media, and then they simply never get what they ordered or at least that’s how it typically works.”

Although online shopping scams don’t often amount to a high financial loss in individual cases, Fletcher said they happen more frequently than any other fraud category.

Business impersonation scams:

“People are getting texts, emails, phone calls, you name it from what looked to be well known companies, but in fact, it’s an imposter,” Fletcher explained. “And when they engage with that fake company, they end up being scammed.”

She said before doing anything, double check who is sending the message. Independently verify the phone number and contact the person or business directly.

Investment scams:

“While it’s number three on the total number of reports of money loss, it’s number one if you look at aggregate losses – $3.5 billion dollars reported lost so far this year on investment scams,” Fletcher shared. “These are fake websites that are set up that look very much like real investment platforms, and people are often coaxed by people they meet on social media. They’re coaxed into sending their money to these platforms when in fact, it’s all fake and they lose the money.”

Imposter scams, especially of government officials:

“Typically, a real government agency is not going to call you up,” Fletcher explained. “You’re going to receive correspondence by mail, typically, and certainly they’re not going to call you up and tell you to buy cryptocurrency, tell you to buy gift cards, tell you you’re in terrible trouble and you need to act urgently.”

Romance scams:

“Keep in mind that with these romance scams, it’s long been the case that you don’t meet these people in person. And that’s a big red flag,” Fletcher cautioned. “So, they can pretend to be anybody they want to be. They’ll create a fake social media profile and make themselves appear to be very appealing.”

Other top scams included fake checks, tech support, and sweepstakes or lottery scams.

To report suspected scams or fraud, visit ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

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