From Our President: Today's Digital Scams

Fraudsters have always been a fixture of the American marketplace, from the infamous snake oil salesmen of the 1800s right up to the modern imposters of online marketplaces.

Today’s scammers, however, have technology on their side, which is why an estimated $8.8 billion was lost to scams in 2022, more than twice the amount stolen in 2020. Robocalls, phishing texts, and emails remain some of the most common tools of deceit, but criminals are nothing if not innovative: Earlier this year, an Arizona woman reportedly got a call claiming her daughter had been kidnapped and demanding $1 million in ransom. She almost fell for the con because, according to Phoenix TV station KTVK, the caller used artificial intelligence to replicate her daughter’s voice.

To make matters worse, consumer protections are not keeping up with the tech innovations putting us at risk. A recent CR study of peer-to-peer payment (P2P) apps, such as Venmo and Zelle, found that the companies behind these popular tools typically do not intervene or compensate users when they’re scammed into sending money. Consumers fought hard for robust protections against credit and debit card fraud, and we need the same level of security when we use the latest digital finance tools.

That’s why we’re shining a light on these problems with CR’s scam protection guide, which will help you spot common scams. And it’s why we’re working with companies and policymakers to strengthen digital security policies and protections. At CR, we believe in fair digital finance tools for all consumers, so watch for us to roll out more investigations and evaluations of these products and services, including those popular “buy now, pay later” loans and mobile banking apps.

You can help, too, by signing our petition calling for commonsense protections in P2P apps.