Consumer 

Protec ion 

Reports about fraud originating on 

social media soared over five years 

2021 total reported losses were about 18 times what 

they were in 2017, and the number of peop_le who 

reported losing money in 2021 grew to 19 times 

higher than those reports in 2017. 

95K 

Figures based on fraud reports directly to the FTC 

indicating a monetary loss and identifying social 

media as the method of contact. 

Data Spot ig ht 

FTC reporting back to you 

January 2022 

Social media a gold mine for scammers in 2021 

Social media permeates the lives of many people – we use it to stay in touch, make new friends, shop, and have 

fun. But reports to the FTC show that social media is also increasingly where scammers go to con us. More than 

one in four people who reported losing money to fraud in 2021 said it started on social media with an ad, a post, 

or a message.

1 In fact, the data suggest that social media was far more profitable to scammers in 2021 than any 

other method of reaching people.2 

More than 95,000 people reported about $770 million in losses to fraud initiated on social media platforms in 

2021.

3 Those losses account for about 25% of all reported losses to fraud in 2021 and represent a stunning 

eighteenfold increase over 2017 reported losses. Reports are up for 

every age group, but people 18 to 39 were more than twice as likely 

as older adults to report losing money to these scams in 2021.4 

For scammers, there’s a lot to like about social media. It’s a low-cost 

way to reach billions of people from anywhere in the world. It’s easy 

to manufacture a fake persona, or scammers can hack into an 

existing profile to get “friends” to con. There’s the ability to fine-tune 

their approach by studying the personal details people share on 

social media. In fact, scammers could easily use the tools available to 

advertisers on social media platforms to systematically target people 

with bogus ads based on personal details such as their age, interests, 

or past purchases. 

Reports make clear that social media is a tool for scammers in 

investment scams, particularly those involving bogus cryptocurrency 

investments — an area that has seen a massive surge in reports.

5 

More than half of people who reported losses to investment scams in 

2021 said the scam started on social media.

6 Reports to the FTC show 

scammers use social media platforms to promote bogus investment 

opportunities, and even to connect with people directly as supposed 

friends to encourage them to invest. People send money, often 

cryptocurrency, on promises of huge returns, but end up empty 

handed.7 

After investment scams, FTC data point to romance scams as the 

second most profitable fraud on social media. Losses to romance 

Data Spotlight |Social media a gold mine for scammers in 2021 1 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Consumer 

Protection Data Spotlight 

FTC reporting back to you 

Top frauds reported as originating on social media in 2021 

While investment and romance scams topped the list on dollars lost, the largest number of reports came from 

people who said they were scammed trying to buy something they saw marketed on social media. 

■ Investment Scams ■ Online Shopping 

Romance Scams Other Frauds 

37% 24% 

TOTAL REPORTED LOSS 

$770M 

total 

27% 18% 9% 45% 28% 

NUMBER OF LOSS REPORTS 

95K 

total 

Figures based on fraud reports directly to the FTC identifying social media as the method of contact Investment scams include the 

following fraud subcategories: art, gems and rare coin investments, investment seminars and advice, stocks and commodity futures 

trading, and miscellaneous investments. 

January 2022 

scams have climbed to record highs in recent years. More than a third of people who said they lost money to an 

online romance scam in 2021 said it began on Facebook or Instagram.

8 These scams often start with a seemingly 

innocent friend request from a stranger, followed by sweet talk, and then, inevitably, a request for money.

9 

While investment and romance scams top the list on dollars lost, the largest number of reports came from 

people who said they were scammed trying to buy something they saw marketed on social media.

10 In fact, 45% 

of reports of money lost to social media scams in 2021 were about online shopping. In nearly 70% of these 

reports, people said they placed an order, usually after seeing an ad, but never got the merchandise. Some 

reports even described ads that impersonated real online retailers that drove people to lookalike websites. 

When people identified a specific social media platform in their reports of undelivered goods, nearly 9 out of 10 

named Facebook or Instagram.11 

Together, investment scams, romance scams, and online shopping fraud accounted for over 70% of reported 

losses to social media scams in 2021. But there are many other frauds on social media too, and new ones 

popping up all the time. Here are some ways to help you and your family stay safe on social media: 

• Limit who can see your posts and information on social media. All platforms collect information about 

you from your activities on social media, but visit your privacy settings to set some restrictions. 

• Check if you can opt out of targeted advertising. Some platforms let you do that. 

• If you get a message from a friend about an opportunity or an urgent need for money, call them. Their 

account may have been hacked – especially if they ask you to pay by cryptocurrency, gift card, or wire 

transfer. That’s how scammers ask you to pay. 

• If someone appears on your social media and rushes you to start a friendship or romance, slow down. 

Read about romance scams. And never send money to someone you haven’t met in person. 

• Before you buy, check out the company. Search online for its name plus “scam” or “complaint.” 

To learn more about how to spot, avoid, and report scams—and how to recover money if you’ve paid a 

scammer—visit ftc.gov/scams. If you spot a scam, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. 

The FTC uses reports from the public to investigate and stop fraud, for consumer education and outreach, and for analyses like this. File 

your fraud report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. To explore Sentinel data, visit FTC.gov/exploredata. 

Data Spotlight | Social media a gold mine for scammers in 2021 2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ConSUf!ler Data Spotlight Protection FTC reporting back to you January 2022 

1 Excluding reports that did not specify a method of contact, 27% (94,541) of 349,177 2021 fraud reports to the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel Network indicating a dollar 

loss identified social media as the contact method. Reports provided by data contributors are excluded here and throughout this Spotlight because of differences in 

the collection of contact method information. This method of identifying reports indicating social media as the contact method differs from the method used in an 

October 2020 Data Spotlight titled “Scams Starting on Social Media Proliferate in Early 2020” because of enhancements to FTC’s collection of contact method 

information beginning in October 2020. Both methods show a significant increase in reports about fraud initiated on social media. 

2 Excluding reports that did not indicate a contact method, the total amount reported lost to frauds indicating social media as the contact method in 2021 was $770 

million (26%), followed by website or app at $554 million (19%), and phone call at $546 million (18%). Note that the 2021 median individual reported losses were 

highest on phone fraud at $1,110 compared to $468 on frauds indicating social media as the contact method. 

3 Because the vast majority of frauds are not reported to the government, these numbers reflect just a small fraction of the public harm caused by frauds originating 

on social media. See Anderson, K. B., To Whom Do Victims of Mass-Market Consumer Fraud Complain? at 1 (May 2021), available at 

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3852323 (study showed only 4.8% of people who experienced mass-market consumer fraud complained to a 

Better Business Bureau or a government entity). 

4 In 2021, adults ages 18-39 submitted fraud loss reports indicating social media as the contact method at a rate 2.4 times higher than adults 40 and over. About 

92% (87,048 reports) of 2021 fraud loss reports indicating social media as the contact method included age information. This age comparison is normalized based on 

the number of loss reports per million population by age during this period. Population numbers were obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Estimates of the 

Resident Population for Selected Age Groups by Sex for the United States (June 2020). 

5 See FTC Consumer Protection Data Spotlight, Cryptocurrency buzz drives record investment scam losses (May 17, 2021), available at https://www.ftc.gov/newsevents/blogs/data-spotlight/2021/05/cryptocurrency-buzz-drives-recordinvestment-scam-losses. 

6 Excluding reports that did not indicate a contact method, 54% of 2021 loss reports to fraud categorized as investment related identified social media as the contact 

method. The top platforms identified in these reports were Instagram (36%), Facebook (28%), WhatsApp (9%), and Telegram (7%). Reports that did not indicate a 

platform are excluded from these calculations. The median individual reported loss on investment related fraud originating on social media was $1,800 in 2021. 

7 Excluding reports that did not indicate a payment method, cryptocurrency was indicated as the method of payment in 64% of 2021 investment related fraud 

reports that indicated social media as the method of contact, followed by payment app or service (13%), and bank transfer or payment at (9%). 

8 This figure is based on 2021 loss reports directly to the FTC categorized as romance scams and where the consumer identified an online platform. Of these, the top 

platforms identified as the starting point for the scam were Facebook (23%) and Instagram (13%). 

9 Excluding reports that did not indicate a payment method, the most frequently reported payment method for 2021 romance scam reports indicating social media as 

the method of contact were as follows: gift card or reload card (30%), cryptocurrency (18%), and payment app or service (15%). The 2021 median individual 

reported loss on romance scam reports indicating social media as the method of contact was $2,000. 

10 Excluding reports that did not indicate a payment method, the most frequently reported payment methods for 2021 online shopping reports indicating social 

media as the method of contact were as follows: payment app or service (29%), debit card (28%), and credit card (24%). The 2021 median individual reported loss 

on online shopping reports indicating social media as the method of contact was $115. 

11 Facebook was identified as the social media platform in 59% of these reports, and Instagram was identified in 27%. 

Data Spotlight | Social media a gold mine for scammers in 2021 3