Security News > 2023 > February > FTC: $1.3 billion lost by 70,000 Americans to romance scams last year
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission says Americans once again reported record losses of $1.3 billion to romance scams in 2022, with median losses of $4,400.
"Last year's romance scam numbers looked a lot like 2021 all over again, and it's not a pretty picture. In 2022, nearly 70,000 people reported a romance scam, and reported losses hit a staggering $1.3 billion," the FTC said.
Scam loss statistics are based on Americans' romance scam reports to FTC's Sentinel and now also include reports filed with the Internet Crimes Complaint Center after 2019.
"People reported sending more money to romance scammers using cryptocurrency and bank wires than any other method: together, they accounted for more than 60% of reported losses to romance scams in 2022," the FTC added.
"While not the costliest payment method, gift cards were the most frequently reported - 24% of people who reported losing money to a romance scam in 2022 said it was taken using gift cards."
To further illustrate the scale of this massive ongoing problem, the Department of Justice's website currently lists hundreds of cases where romance scammers were indicted or found guilty of running or being involved in large-scale romance fraud schemes targeting U.S. citizens.