01/27/2022 | News release | Distributed by Public on 01/27/2022 11:05
Social media is a gold mine for scammers, and in the latest FTC Data Spotlight, we're digging deeper into this deceptive trend happening across social media platforms.
Why do we repeatedly ask people to file reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov to let us know when they spot questionable practices? Because - among other things - the FTC and law enforcement members of the Consumer Sentinel Network use that information to spot, track, and ultimately challenge illegal practices. The FTC's latest Data Spotlight documents the disturbing trend that among consumers who report scams, a skyrocketing percentage of them crossed paths with the perpetrator on social media.
In 2021, more than 95,000 people reported about $770 million in losses to fraud initiated on social media platforms. Those losses accounted for about 25% of all reported fraud losses that year. Compare those numbers to reported losses initiated on social media platforms in 2017 and it's an eighteenfold increase.
Here are some other facts to consider:
Why should these stats concern businesses? First, because when we say "consumers," we're talking about your family, your employees, people in your community, and you. Second, the increase in scam reports that trace back to advertising on social media should be of concern to companies that use those same platforms to promote their product honestly. Will consumers who have lost money due to advertising scams on social media think twice before opening their wallet again?
Read the latest FTC Data Spotlight and check out more Spotlightsthat illuminate other trends in what consumers are telling us. Have you spotted a questionable business practice? Let us hear from you at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.