With a new school year just around the corner, now’s a good time to familiarize yourself with common scams targeting students and recent grads. Given the significant costs associated with obtaining a degree, criminals often try to take advantage of those looking to make some extra cash or obtain relief from loans. Unfortunately, college students […]
CAPTCHA checks—or pop-ups with a quick test to determine if the computer user is a robot—have become inescapable on the modern web. The FTC is warning that fraudsters are spreading fake CAPTCHA requests to take advantage of consumers. If you aren’t paying attention, criminals can quickly take control of your device. The threat begins as […]
With summer just around the corner, your mind might be on vacation already. But scammers aren’t taking a break. Watch out for these frequent traps to make sure your holiday plans continue without a hitch. Phony listings for lodging Especially common on third-party platforms and social media marketplaces, criminals often advertise a room or entire […]
A recent leak of customer information from Booking.com is making it easier for criminals to impersonate hotels and airlines in a scam called reservation hijacking. As hackers steal more of our personal and reservation data, fraudsters can create more convincing impersonations by referencing accurate information, like confirmation numbers, destinations, and personal details. These kinds of […]
The IRS has released its annual list of top scams to keep an eye out for ahead of Tax Day. Called the Dirty Dozen, the agency highlighted trends ranging from impersonation fraud to inflated tax returns. Here are just a few frauds that topped the IRS’ list. Impersonation of IRS officials. The top two spots […]
Fraud.org’s just-released Top Ten Scams of 2025 report reveals troubling trends. Phishing scams surged and investment scams—especially those involving cryptocurrency—caused devastating financial losses, and reports from younger consumers increased sharply. Spike in phishing scams accounts for 1 in 3 fraud reports. Phishing and spoofing scams were the most commonly reported fraud in 2025. These impersonation schemes, in which criminals pose as trusted institutions or individuals […]
In 2025, data point after data point showed that the issue of fraud has only gotten worse. As we begin the new year, here are five statistics on scams that caught our eye. In one year, Americans lost an estimated $196 billion to fraud Consumers reported losing $12.5 billion to scams in 2024 (the latest full year of data available). However, law enforcement agencies believe […]
As shoppers rush to lock in deals and check names off holiday gift lists, fraudsters are working overtime. Recent data from TransUnion shows that digital fraud attempts in the U.S. jumped sharply — rising 4.4 percent during the 2024 holiday shopping season compared with the non-holiday period. Before you lose your “holiday cheer,” keep in […]
As the federal government shutdown stretches into its second month and more social benefit programs are disrupted, scammers are seizing the opportunity to exploit consumers’ uncertainty and fear. State attorneys general, banks, and media outlets are already warning of an uptick in fraud targeting beneficiaries of federal programs. Scammers never miss a crisis. Millions of […]
The BBB is warning about recent reports of “ghost tapping” scams. While this may sound like a Halloween prank, it’s anything but funny. Ghost tapping takes advantage of Near Field Communications (NFC), the technology embedded in many payment cards and smartphones that allows tap-to-pay functions. In crowded or distracting environments, bad actors can try to […]
