Online Scams and Attacks in America Today
Online scams and other internet crimes are skyrocketing, with a record $16.6 billion in losses reported to the FBI in 2024. The federal government, banks and companies are all sounding alarms. And the public is also wary, with many having firsthand experience:
- Nearly all Americans view online scams and attacks as a national problem. More than nine-in-ten say online scams and attacks are a problem in the country, including 79% who describe them as a major problem.
- Most U.S. adults have been a victim of an online scam or attack. We find that 73% of U.S. adults have ever experienced things like credit card fraud, ransomware or online shopping scams.
Related Knowledge Center: Digital privacy and data security
If you’re online, you’re generating a constant stream of information about yourself — sometimes voluntarily, sometimes unwittingly — that is assembled and used to craft your online experience. And generate wealth for data brokers. Meanwhile, designers and managers of the digital infrastructure on which the world depends are engaged in a never-ending effort to thwart attempts, by both criminal enterprises and state actors, to exploit vulnerabilities in those systems.
Signalgate | State surveillance