U.S. Seniors Lost More Money to Scammers in 2024 Than You Think

Online scammers swindled the elderly in the U.S. out of a lot of money last year.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s annual Internet Crime Report, seniors lost nearly $5 billion to online scams in 2024 alone.

Overall, the FBI said there were 859,532 reports filed last year to the tune of more than $16 billion. That is a 33 percent increase from 2023.

The 60+ group is the most victimized demographic. They filed 147,127 complaints, which totaled losses of $4.8 billion. That’s a staggering 46 percent increase in complaints and 43 percent increase in losses from the prior year.

The elderly, who lost an average of $83,000 each, were most commonly fooled by investment, tech support, and confidence/romance scams.

Cryptocurrency fraud is also on the rise. In fact, it was the topic of nearly 150,000 complaints, with losses totaling $9.3 billion. Those above 60 were responsible for 33,369 of those reports, and lost more than $2.8 billion to such scams.

Who Else Did Scammers Target?

While seniors are favorite targets for scammers, those in their 30s, 40s, and 50s were swindled out of billions as well. The former group lost the least of the three with $1.4 billion, while the latter two each reported losses totaling more than $2 billion.

While phishing/spoofing was found to be the most common complaint type overall, it was investment scams that lost people the most money, more than $6.5 billion. Overall, cyber-enabled fraud is responsible for almost 83 percent of all reported losses in 2024.

California is the most victimized state by far, in both the number of complaints and the amount lost.

“As nearly all aspects of our lives have become digitally connected, the attack surface for cyber actors has grown exponentially. Scammers are increasingly using the Internet to steal Americans’ hard-earned savings,” B. Chad Yarbrough, the Operations Director for Criminal and Cyber at the FBI, wrote in the report. “And with today’s technology, it can take mere taps on a keyboard to hijack networks, cripple water systems, or even rob virtual exchanges. Cryptocurrency has become an enticing means to cheat investors, launder proceeds, and engage in other illicit schemes.”

In a conference call with reporters, Christopher Delzotto, the section chief of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, addressed the report.

“Every number in this report represents a real person, a victim whose trust was betrayed,” Delzotto, said, per ABC News, “whose financial security was compromised and whose voice deserves to be heard.”