Fraud Losses By Consumers More Than $5.8 Billion In 2021

Feb 22, 2022 | Archive

FTC Received 2.8 Million Fraud Reports From Consumers In 2021

Federal Trade Commission data shows that consumers reported losing more than $5.8 billion to fraud in 2021, an increase of more than 70 percent over the previous year.

The FTC received fraud reports from more than 2.8 million consumers last year, with the most commonly reported category once again being imposter scams, followed by online shopping scams.

Prizes, sweepstakes, and lotteries; internet services; and business and job opportunities rounded out the top five fraud categories.

Of the losses reported by consumers, more than $2.3 billion of losses reported last year were due to imposter scams (up from $1.2 billion in 2020), while online shopping accounted for about $392 million in reported losses from consumers, up from $246 million in 2020.

Consumer Sentinel Network 2021 Data Book

In 2021, the Consumer Sentinel Network took in over 5.7 million reports, an increase from 2020. – Fraud: 2.8 million (49% of all reports) – Identity theft: 1.4 million (25%) – Other: 1.5 million (27%)

In 2021, people filed more reports about Identity Theft (25.0% of all reports), in all its various forms, than any other type of complaint. Imposter Scams, a subset of Fraud reports, followed with 984,756 reports from consumers in 2021 (17.2% of all reports). Credit Bureaus, Information Furnishers and Report Users (10.3% of all reports) rounded out the top three reports to Sentinel.

Fraud

There were over 984,000 imposter scam reports to Sentinel. Seventeen percent of those reported a dollar loss, totaling over $2.3 billion lost to imposter scams in 2021. These scams include, for example, romance scams, people falsely claiming to be the government, a relative in distress, a well-known business, or a technical support expert, to get a consumer’s money.

Of the nearly 2.8 million fraud reports, 25% indicated money was lost. In 2021, people reported losing more than $5.8 billion to fraud – an increase of $2.4 billion over 2020.

The median loss for all fraud reports in 2021 is $500. Among the top 10 frauds reported, the median individual losses were highest in these categories: – Investment Related ($3,000) – Foreign Money Offers and Counterfeit Check Scams ($2,000) – Business and Job Opportunities ($1,991)

Telephone was the method of contact for 36% of fraud reports with a contact method identified. Nine percent of those reports indicated a money loss – but that 9% reported an aggregate loss of nearly $692 million, and a $1,200 median loss.

Bank transfers and payments accounted for the highest aggregate losses reported in 2021 ($756 million), followed closely by Cryptocurrency ($750 million), while credit cards were most frequently identified as the payment method in fraud reports.

Of people who reported their age, those aged 20-29 reported losing money to fraud in 41% of reports filed with the FTC, while people aged 70 – 79 reported losing money in 18% of their reports and people 80 and over reported it in 17% of their reports. But when they did experience a loss, people aged 70 and older reported much higher median losses than any other age group.

Identity Theft

Government Documents or Benefits Fraud tops the list of identity theft types reported in 2021. The FTC received 395,948 reports from people who said their information was misused to apply for a government document or benefit, such as unemployment insurance.

Military

Military consumers reported over 110,000 fraud complaints, including 44,039 imposter scams that reportedly cost them over $103 million in 2021.

Top States

The states with the highest per capita rates of reported fraud in 2021 were Georgia, Maryland, Delaware, Nevada, and Florida. For reported identity theft, the top states in 2021 were Rhode Island, Kansas, Illinois, Louisiana, and Georgia.

Source: FTC.gov

Consumer Product Safety Recall Alerts – Has your product been recalled?

Feb 17, 2022 | Archive

Product Recall & Safety Information For Consumers To Ensure They Are Aware Of Dangerous Or Potentially Unsafe, Hazardous Or Defective Products

To see if a product is unsafe before you buy it, please click: Unsafe Products Report Search. 

To search for the latest recall information, to report a dangerous product or to learn about important safety tips, please click: Online Resource for Recalls.

FDA Orders Philips Respironics to Notify Patients Regarding the Recall of Certain Breathing Assistance Machines – The FDA has determined that this order is necessary to eliminate the unreasonable risk of harm posed by the recalled products, because the company’s notification efforts to date have been inadequate. For more information, please CLICK HERE.

Fitbit Recalls Ionic Smartwatches; One Million Sold in the U.S. Hazard: The lithium-ion battery in the Ionic smartwatch can overheat, posing a burn hazard. For more information, please click Recall 22-089. 

Lovevery Recalls Drinking Cup With Handle in The Inspector Play Kits Due to Choking Hazard – Hazard: The handle can detach from the steel cup, posing a choking hazard to young children. For more information, please click Recall 22-730. 

Yamaha Recalls Golf Cars and Personal Transportation Vehicles Due to Risk of Injury or Death – Hazard: The recalled vehicles can have brake failure, posing a crash hazard that could result in injury or death to the user or bystander. For more information, please click Recall 22-726. 

Zeno Recalls Infant Walkers Due to Fall and Entrapment Hazards – Hazard: The infant walkers fail to meet the federal safety standard. They can fit through a standard doorway and are not designed to stop at the edge of a step as required by the federal safety standard. The walkers also have leg openings that allow the child to slip down until the child’s head can become entrapped at the neck. Babies using these walkers can be seriously injured or killed. For more information, please click Recall 22-724. 

BrushX Hot Air Brushes Recalled Due to Electrocution or Shock Hazard – Hazard: The recalled hot air brushes do not have an immersion protection device, posing an electrocution or shock hazard to the user if it falls into water when plugged in. For more information, please click: Recall 22-725. 

Valco Baby Recalls Snap Duo Trend Strollers Due to Fall Hazard – Hazard: The stroller’s front wheels can break off while in use, causing the strollers to fall unexpectedly, posing a fall hazard to children in the stroller. For more information, please click: Recall 22-083. 

Viking Range Recalls Freestanding Gas Ranges Due to Risk of Gas Leak and Fire Hazard – Hazard: The rigid gas tubing can separate at the joint to the bake, broil and griddle burners, posing a risk of a gas leak and fire hazard when these burners are in operation. For more information, please click Recall 22-082. 

Voluntary Nationwide Recall of Sure and Brut Aerosol Sprays Due to the Presence of Benzene – Hazard: Benzene is classified as a human carcinogen. Exposure to benzene can occur by inhalation, orally, and through the skin and it can result in cancers including leukemia and blood cancer of the bone marrow and blood disorders which can be life-threatening. Benzene is prevalent in the environment. Humans around the world have daily exposures to it indoors and outdoors from multiple sources. To date, no reports of adverse events related to this recall have been reported. This voluntary recall is being conducted out of an abundance of caution. For more information, please click: Sure, Brut.