Scams that ensnare the largest number of victims involve social media and online purchases, according to a just-released study from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation.
Of the survey of 1,408 Americans and Canadians who were targeted and reported a scam, nearly half (47%) did not engage with the fraudster and so were not victimized.
Thirty percent engaged but did not lose money, yet the 23% that did engage and ultimately lost money engaged in online purchases.
Survey respondents who engaged and became victims were more likely to report being exposed to those scams on a website or through social media than via telephone, mail or email.
When phone and email were used by scammers to target consumers, relatively few consumers engaged with the scammer or lost money. However, when exposed to a scam on social media, 91% engaged and 53% lost money. Similarly, 81% of consumers who were exposed to a fraud via a website said they engaged and 50% lost money.
The 24-page report, "Exposed to Scams: What Separates Victims from Non-Victims," was issued in concert with the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust and the Stanford Center on Longevity, in recognition of World Investor Week, which started Monday.
