Scammers had a banner year in 2024, stealing $12.5 billion from Americans, according to new data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). That figure marks a 25% increase from the previous year, but experts say the real losses could be far higher.
While the overall number of fraud reports remained stable, the percentage of people who admitted to being defrauded jumped from 27% to 38%, and experts believe this could mean scammers are getting better at deceiving their victims, or more people are acknowledging they've been scammed. Or both for that matter.
It is for that reason that consumer advocates now warn that government budget cuts, particularly those implemented by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), could leave Americans even more vulnerable to fraud.
Reduced staffing and fewer resources may limit the government's ability to investigate fraud complaints and hold deceptive businesses accountable.
One major concern is the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which was set to regulate digital payment apps like Venmo and CashApp—popular tools for scammers.
However, the Senate recently repealed a rule that would have expanded the CFPB’s oversight, leaving consumers with fewer protections. Meanwhile, a backlog of fraud complaints continues to pile up at the agency due to staff reductions.
While the FTC has largely avoided massive cuts, recent terminations, including those in the Bureau of Consumer Protection, have raised alarms. The agency even cited limited resources in its legal battle against Amazon over alleged deceptive practices, though it later reversed course, stating it faced no "resource constraints."
Political Shake-Ups
Further complicating the situation, former President Donald Trump recently fired two Democratic FTC commissioners, a move consumer advocates have called "unlawful." John Breyault, VP of Public Policy at the National Consumers League, warned that these terminations could weaken the agency's ability to crack down on fraud.
"The firing of dedicated public servants because they belong to the wrong political party will make the FTC’s work even harder," Breyault said.
With fraud on the rise and key consumer protection agencies facing setbacks, experts are urging consumers to report scams to their state attorneys general—who still have the authority to investigate fraud—even as federal oversight weakens.
