Protect Yourself and Report the Latest Frauds, Scams, Spams, Fakes, Identify Theft Hacks and Hoaxes
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This page lists the most recent fraud, scam, identity theft and other consumer complaints available for each area (country, state, province, etc) that compiles the statistics. If your area's stats are not listed here, and you know where to find them, click here to let us know where they can be found.
Debt collection scams are the top complaint received by the Federal Trade Commission, which has released its 2017 annual report of complaints. using data collected in 2016. The FTC report gives national data, as well as a state-by-state accounting of top complaint categories and a listing of the metropolitan areas that generated the most complaints. This includes the top 50 metropolitan areas for both fraud complaints and identity theft complaints.
Below is the FTC report top ten consumer complaints, followed by those from states that publish a list. Click here for Missouri, New York, Oregon, Ohio, Texas nd Vermont
Besides a description, the FTC (and some states) provide the total number of complaints they received and the percent each category is of the total.
| Rank | Federal (FTC) | FBI | AARP | Arizona | Florida | Illinois | Michigan |
| 1 |
Debt collection 859,090 complaints 28 percent |
Spoofing and Phishing |
Cryptocurrency-romance scam - |
1. Motor Vehicle Sales, Repairs, & Rentals |
1. Do Not Call 17,177 complaints |
1. Consumer Debt (mortgages, collection agencies,
banks) 2,783 complaints |
1. Credit and Financial Concerns: 1,217
complaints for debt collection and reporting, credit repair, payday
lending, and mortgage brokering. Scammers used prohibited debt
collector practices and bogus debts. |
| 2 |
Imposter Scams 406,578 complaints 13 percent |
Business and Investment Fraud | Payday loan scam |
2. Telemarketing Scams |
2. Fuel / Petroleum 1,763 complaints |
2. Identity Theft (government document fraud,
credit cards, utilities, data breaches) 2,391 complaints |
2. Telecommunications, Cable, and Satellite TV:
Stays at the second spot for the second year. This category includes
complaints involving issues like robocalls, telemarketing, wireless
communications, and cable and satellite TV services. Complaints in
these categories exceeded 700 in 2016. |
| 3 |
Identity Theft 399,225 complaints 13 percent |
Business Email Compromise | One-time password (OTP) bot scam |
3. Mortgages and Real Estate Services |
3. Commu-nications 1,644 complaints |
3. Promotions / Schemes (phone scams, investment schemes, lottery scams, phishing) 2,387 complaints |
3, Motor Vehicle and Automobiles: Moving up one
slot from the number 4 spot in 2015, disputes with used car dealers
continue to top this category, with other top complaints involving
motor vehicles and car bodies, new car dealers, and repair shops. |
| 4 |
Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries 292,155 complaints 10 percent |
Consumer Fraud Schemes |
Student loan forgiveness scam |
4. Internet Service & Cell Phones |
4. Landlord / Tenant 1,536 complaints |
4. Construction / Home Improvement (remodeling,
roofs and gutters, heating and cooling, plumbing) 2,094 complaints |
4. Retail: Moving down from the third spot last year, this category includes complaints about general merchandise and furniture stores, business services, eating and drinking places, and computer stores. |
| 5 |
Banks and Lenders 143,987 complaints 5 percent |
Charity and Disaster Fraud |
Puppy purchase scam | 5. Online Sales |
5. Motor Vehicle Repair 1,447 complaints |
5. Telecommunications (telemarketing, cable and
satellite TV, phone service and repairs, cell phones) 1,851 complaints |
5. Internet: Staying at the fifth slot for a second year, complaints in this computer-based category numbered nearly 600. More than a third of these complaints involved online purchases while other complaints include computer communication services and issues with internet service providers. |
| 6 |
Prizes, Sweepstakes and Lotteries 141,643 complaints 5 percent |
Elder Fraud | Check washing scam |
6. Cable TV 1,313 complaints |
6. Education (for-profit schools, student loan debt, loan counseling) 1,691 complaints |
6. Personal Service Providers: Staying at number 6, complaints in this category range from dating services and beauty shops to home security, tax preparations services, and health and fitness organizations. | |
| 7 |
Shop-at-home and Cataglog Sales 109,831 complaints 4 percent |
Election Crimes and Security | Free-gift QR code scam |
7. Medical / Healthcare 1,281 complaints |
7. Used Auto Sales / Motor Vehicles (as-is used cars, financing, warranties) 1,648 complaints |
7. Landlord and Tenant: Also holding its spot from 2015, this category again had more than 400 complaints. A majority of the complaints in this category involved apartment owners and managers. | |
| 8 |
Automobile -Related Complaints 94,673 complaints 3 percent |
Holiday Scams | Fake Amazon Employees |
8. Motor Vehicle / Sales Accessories 1,196 complaints |
8. Internet/Mail Order Products (Internet and catalog purchases, TV and radio advertising) 955 complaints |
8. Contractors: Moving up a spot from last year's list, are complaints about residential building construction services, landscaping services, and special trade contractors. | |
| 9 |
Credit Bureaus and related 49,679 complaints 2 percent |
Romance Scams | Google Voice Scam |
9. Other / Miscellaneous 1,001 complaints |
9. Motor Vehicle/Non-Warranty Repair (collision,
engines, oil changes and tune-ups) 677 complaints |
9. Health Service Providers: Moving up one spot from 2015, this category involves nearly 400 complaints about different health service providers like doctors, dentists, hospitals, and medical clinics. | |
| 10 |
Television and electronic media 49,546 complaints 2 percent |
Skimming | Fake-Job Frauds |
10. Travel / Vacation Plans 943 complaints |
10. New Auto Sales/Motor Vehicles (financing,
defects, advertising) 668 complaints |
10. Gasoline, Fuel, and Energy: Not surprising with this year's continued lower gas prices, this category dropped down from last year's number eight spot, with complaints against gasoline service stations dominating this category in 2016. | |
| Published annually in March | AARP doesn't produce a top 1o list, just periodic lists of scams | AZ AG does a top 5 list only. | From the Dept of Agriculture and Consumer Services | From the Attorney General Madigan, most recent list | Available for 2016 from the Michigan Attorney General's Office |
A complete list of all complaint categories is available on page six of the report.
The FTC enters complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database that is available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies across the country. Agencies use the data to research cases, identify victims and track possible targets.
And please let us know about any suspicious calls or emails you receive. We look for patterns so that we can alert the authorities and victims to new scams, before it is too late!
For a comprehensive list of national and international agencies to report scams, see this page.