• 3 in 10 US. consumers or their household have lost money to a scam in the last five years.
• Identity theft is the most common type of scam affecting 24% of victims who have been financially impacted by scams in the last five years.
• Scam victims lose an average of $545 with more than three in ten losing between $1,000 and $9,999 and 12% suffering over $10,000 in losses.
• Seven in ten (69%) consumers who report a scam to their bank recover a portion of lost funds, with three quarters (74%) of those who claim from their credit card company recouping some of their losses.
• Over half (55%) of scam victims state their mental health was affected as a result of the scam.
• Over half (54%) of scam victims consider switching their financial provider afterwards with 30% going on to do so.
• 59% of scam victims say enhanced fraud detection and monitoring technologies are the most important safeguard to tackling fraud and financial crime.

The global financial landscape is witnessing an alarming shift as scams and Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud emerge as major threats, now rivalling traditional fraud methods in both frequency and impact.

With financial institutions (FIs) having fortified their technological es against traditional fraud, fraudsters have discovered that manipulating individuals through sophisticated scams offers a bigger return for their time when they’re committing that fraud.

Featurespace collaborated with PYMNTS Intelligence to interview 10,103 consumers across the U.S. We sought to examine the impact of scams on consumers, how scams affect their views of FIs and banking, and the critical role FIs play in protecting their customers.

The findings from this extensive research have been compiled in our comprehensive new report, “The Impact of Financial Scams on Consumers’ Finances and Banking Habits” which offers detailed insights into these emerging threats and provides actionable strategies for FIs to better protect their customers.

The financial losses from scams impacting victims

• Identity theft is the most common type of scam, affecting 24% of victims.
• The median financial loss per scam is $545, spread over two transactions.
• Romance scams have the largest impact with average losses of almost $2,000 followed by investment scams through which victims suffer average losses of $1,104.
• In several of the most financially harmful scams, 3 in 10 victims lose between $1,000, and $9,999, and 12% suffered over $10,000 in losses.

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Scams cause damage far beyond financial losses

Going through the experience of being scammed fuels negativity, stress and damage far beyond financial losses.

• 55% of respondents who were scammed say their mental health was affected
• 3 in 10 scam victims stop or reduce their use of mobile and online banking with 11% going as far as to stop using mobile banking completely.
• 42% report that accessing credit became more difficult for them after being scammed due to difficulty in meeting required financial checks and being subject to additional checks.

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