Online Scams in 2026: The Most Common Schemes and How to Stay Safe

Americans reported losing $15.9 billion to fraud in 2025 according to the Federal Trade Commission, and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center logged nearly $21 billion in losses from cyber-enabled crime. This guide explains the scams driving those numbers, the warning signs each one shares, and exactly what to do if you’ve already sent money.

The Scale of Online Fraud in 2026

Two federal agencies collect most U.S. fraud reports, and their latest full-year data both point the same way: fraud is growing, and individual losses are getting bigger.

Measure	Figure	Source
Fraud reports filed in 2025	About 3 million	FTC Consumer Sentinel
Reported fraud losses, 2025	$15.9 billion (up from over $12 billion in 2024)	FTC
Complaints to IC3, 2025	1,008,597	FBI IC3
Losses reported to IC3, 2025	$20.877 billion (up 26% from 2024)	FBI IC3
Average loss per IC3 complaint	$20,699	FBI IC3
Complaints involving cryptocurrency	Losses of about $11.4 billion	FBI IC3
Complaints citing AI-related information	22,364, with about $893 million in losses	FBI IC3

These are only reported losses. In March 2026 congressional testimony, the FTC noted that most victims never report, and it previously estimated the true overall cost of fraud for 2024 could be as high as $195.9 billion.

The IC3 figures come from the FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report; the FTC figures come from its Consumer Sentinel data and its June 2026 imposter scam release.

The 7 Most Common Online Scams Right Now

1. Investment and Crypto Scams

This is the costliest category by far. The FTC says investment scams accounted for over $7.9 billion in reported losses in 2025, about half of all reported fraud losses, with an average individual loss over $10,000. The FBI’s IC3 recorded about $8.6 billion in investment fraud losses.

How It Works:

It often starts with a “wrong number” text, a friendly stranger on social media or a dating app, or an invitation to an investing group on WhatsApp or Telegram. Over weeks, the scammer builds trust, then introduces a crypto trading platform or app. The victim deposits a small amount and sees impressive fake profits on the dashboard. They invest more. When they try to withdraw, they’re told to pay a “tax” or “fee” first. The money is gone.

Red Flags:

• A new online contact who steers conversation toward money or investing
• Guaranteed returns or “no risk” promises
• An app or website you can’t find in official app stores or that has no regulatory registration
• Pressure to pay fees before you can withdraw your own money

2. Imposter Scams: Banks, Government, and Tech Support

Imposter scams are the most-reported fraud type, with over 1 million reports to the FTC in 2025. The FTC says business impersonators caused nearly $1 billion in reported losses, led by fake bank representatives, and government impersonators caused $920 million, up from $789 million in 2024. IC3 separately logged more than $2.1 billion in tech and customer support scam losses.

Common Versions:

• Fake bank fraud alert: A text asks if you authorized a large purchase. When you reply, a “fraud department” calls and tells you to move money to a “safe account” to protect it. The safe account belongs to the scammer. The FTC notes some of the costliest impersonation scams start exactly this way.
• Government imposter: Someone claiming to be from the IRS, Social Security, a court, or law enforcement says you owe money or face arrest.
• Tech support: A pop-up with a loud alarm claims your computer is infected and shows a phone number. The “technician” gains remote access and drains accounts.
• Tech support to government handoff: Scammers sometimes pass victims between fake tech support, fake bank staff, and fake federal agents to build credibility.

The rule: Your bank, the IRS, and the Social Security Administration will never ask you to move money to protect it, pay with gift cards or crypto, or keep a call secret. Hang up and call the number on your card or the agency’s official website.

3. Phishing and Smishing

Phishing and spoofing were the most common complaint type at IC3, with 191,561 reports in 2025. The FTC found that text messages were the top reported contact method when people named how a scammer reached them.

Typical 2026 lures include unpaid toll notices, package delivery problems, account suspensions, and “verify your identity” messages. The link leads to a convincing fake login page that captures your password, card number, or one-time code.

• Don’t tap links in unexpected texts. Go directly to the company’s app or type the web address yourself.
• Never share a one-time verification code with anyone who contacts you. Legitimate companies don’t ask for it.
• Forward spam texts to 7726 (SPAM) so carriers can block them, then delete.

4. Romance and Friendship Scams

IC3 recorded about $929 million in confidence and romance scam losses in 2025. The FTC notes that social media was the contact method linked to the largest total losses, over $2 billion in fiscal year 2025.

Romance scammers build an emotional relationship over weeks or months, always have a reason they can’t video chat or meet (military deployment, oil rig, overseas work), then need money for an emergency, a customs fee, or a plane ticket. Increasingly, the “relationship” becomes a pitch for a crypto investment, merging romance and investment fraud.

Test: if someone you’ve never met in person asks for money or wants to teach you to invest, stop. Do a reverse image search on their photos and talk to a friend or family member before sending anything.

5. Job and Task Scams

IC3 recorded 24,688 employment scam complaints with about $363 million in losses in 2025, up from about $264 million the year before. The FTC says reports about job scams tripled from 2020 to 2024, and reported losses jumped from $90 million to $501 million over that period.

The fastest-growing variant is the “task scam”: you’re paid small amounts to like videos or rate products through an app, then told to deposit your own money (usually crypto) to open up bigger tasks or withdraw earnings. Other versions include fake check scams, where you’re sent a check for equipment and told to wire back the extra, and reshipping jobs that make you a link in a stolen-goods chain.

6. AI-Powered Scams: Voice Clones and Deepfakes

For the first time, the 2025 IC3 report broke out AI-related complaints: more than 22,000, with nearly $900 million in losses. The FBI describes criminals using AI to generate convincing social media profiles, personalized messages, and voice clones.

The most frightening version is the family emergency or “grandparent” scam, where a cloned voice of a grandchild or child calls in apparent distress and begs for bail money or a hospital payment. AI also helps scammers produce fake video calls of executives in business email compromise schemes, which alone accounted for about $3 billion in IC3-reported losses.

Defense: agree on a family safe word that anyone calling in an emergency must say. If you get a panicked call, hang up and call the person back on the number you already have.

7. Online Shopping and Non-Delivery Scams

IC3 logged 56,478 non-payment and non-delivery complaints and about $503 million in losses. These include fake online stores advertised on social media, too-good-to-be-true deals on Facebook Marketplace, pets that don’t exist, and sellers who insist on Zelle, Venmo, or wire transfers instead of protected checkout.

With holiday shopping approaching, pay with a credit card when possible, since it offers dispute rights; research unfamiliar stores by searching the name plus “scam” or “reviews”; and be wary of sites that only accept payment apps, crypto, or gift cards.

Scams to Watch for This Fall and Holiday Season

Scammers follow the calendar. Expect more fake package-delivery texts as holiday orders ship, fake charity appeals after natural disasters, bogus open-enrollment health insurance calls from October through January, and phony tax-refund or IRS messages once filing season starts. Seasonal timing makes a lure feel expected, which is exactly why it works. Treat any unexpected message tied to a current event the same way: don’t click, don’t call back the number provided, and go to the official source yourself.

Talk about these patterns with family members, especially parents and grandparents. Older adults lost the most money of any age group in 2025 IC3 data, and a five-minute conversation about the fake bank alert or the grandparent voice-clone call can prevent a devastating loss.

Warning Signs Every Scam Shares

The FTC’s guidance boils scams down to four signs. If you see any one of them, stop:

1. They pretend to be from an organization you know, such as a bank, a government agency, or a well-known company.
2. They say there’s a problem or a prize: your account is locked, you owe taxes, a family member is in trouble, or you’ve won something.
3. They pressure you to act immediately and often tell you not to hang up or not to tell anyone.
4. They tell you to pay in a specific way: cryptocurrency, gift cards, a wire transfer, a payment app, or cash handed to a courier.

How to Protect Yourself: A Practical Checklist

• Turn on multi-factor authentication for email, banking, and social media; prefer an authenticator app or passkey over text codes.
• Use a password manager and unique passwords for every account.
• Freeze your credit at Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. It’s free and stops new accounts opened in your name.
• Set up transaction alerts on bank and credit card accounts.
• Keep phone, computer, and browser software updated.
• Register your number at DoNotCall.gov to reduce legitimate telemarketing, which makes unexpected calls easier to spot.
• Set a family safe word and talk to older relatives about the bank-alert and grandparent scams.
• Pause before paying. A 10-minute call to someone you trust breaks the urgency scammers depend on.

What to Do If You’ve Been Scammed

1. Contact your bank or card issuer immediately. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment. The faster you call, the better the odds, especially for wire transfers.
2. Report it to the FBI at IC3.gov. The IC3’s financial fraud process works best when complaints are filed quickly.
3. Report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Reports feed the database law enforcement uses to build cases.
4. If your identity was stolen, go to IdentityTheft.gov for a personalized recovery plan.
5. Change passwords on any account that may be exposed and remove any remote-access software a scammer installed.
6. Watch for recovery scams. Anyone who contacts you promising to recover lost money for a fee is almost certainly a second scammer.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most common online scam in 2026?

By number of reports, imposter scams (fake banks, government agencies, and businesses) lead FTC data, and phishing leads FBI IC3 complaints. By dollars lost, investment scams, especially crypto investment scams, are the largest.

How much money did Americans lose to scams in 2025?

The FTC received reports of $15.9 billion in fraud losses. The FBI’s IC3 recorded about $20.9 billion in losses from internet-related crime. The two databases overlap and measure slightly different things.

Can I get my money back after a scam?

Sometimes. Credit card charges have the strongest dispute rights. Bank transfers and wires can occasionally be recalled if you act within hours. Crypto and gift card payments are very hard to recover, which is exactly why scammers demand them.

Are older adults more likely to lose money to scams?

They lose more per incident. IC3 received 201,266 complaints from people 60 and older in 2025, with about $7.7 billion in losses and an average loss of $38,501, roughly 1.86 times the overall average.

How can I tell if a text message is a scam?

Be suspicious of any unexpected text that includes a link and asks you to pay, verify, or log in, especially about tolls, packages, or bank alerts. Go directly to the official app or website instead of tapping the link.

Is it a scam if someone asks me to pay with gift cards?

Yes. No legitimate business or government agency requires payment in gift cards. Treat any such request as a scam.

Slow Down, Verify, Then Act

Scams in 2026 use better technology, but they still depend on the same trick: getting you to act before you think. Hang up, look up the official number yourself, and never pay with crypto, gift cards, or wire transfers to someone who contacted you first. Share this with the people in your life who are most likely to get that call.