The Global State of Scams 2020
Author: Jorij
Online scams, like cybercrime in general, are very difficult to combat. Not only are most scams not reported, the scammers themselves are rarely based in the same country as the victim. In addition, the current way that hosting companies, SSL certifiers, ecommerce platforms, email houses, registries and registrars offer their infrastructure allows scammers to set-up shop very easily, cheaply and, most importantly, anonymously.
The Global State of Scams 2020 report contains data from 31 countries about how each one fights online scams. Nearly all countries researched report a growth in the number of online scams and money lost. Only Sweden (-6%) and Italy (-9%) reported a decrease in the number of scams in 2019. Due to the Coronavirus epidemic, an increase of 40% for 2020 can be expected as more and more consumers move to online shopping.
Several countries report that online fraud is becoming the most reported crime. Singapore reported that scams made up 27% of overall crime in 2019, up from 19% in 2018. Likewise, fraud is the most experienced crime in the United Kingdom and the biggest source of consumer angst in the United States. Russia reports that cybercrime’s share as part of all crimes may grow from 14% in 2019 to 30% in 2023.
Based on the analysis of the 30+ countries, 140 million scams were reported. Extended to the global population, 3% of the global population was scammed in one way or another. According to previous research by Scamadviser, anybody can be scammed. Surprisingly, higher educated and high-income consumers get scammed more as they spend more online and take more risks. The total amount of money lost was € 36 billion in 2019 or € 225 per reported scam.
Online fraud is less visible as only 7% of all cases are reported. Especially in developing countries, scam reporting has not yet been centralized and no specialized law enforcement team has been set-up to combat online fraud. Likewise, in countries where police forces are historically set-up decentralized like Germany, Spain, and Switzerland a central approach to scam prevention, reporting and fighting is still developing.
Even in countries where online scams are receiving government attention like Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Singapore and the United Kingdom, scam reporting is still spread across multiple organizations such as banks, credit card companies, consumer protection agencies, police forces, public-private partnerships and review sites.
As scammers nearly always operate internationally and spread their scams across multiple countries, the chance of getting identified, investigated and, in the end, caught is very low.
Report a Scam!
Have you fallen for a hoax, bought a fake product? Report the site and warn others!
Scam Categories
Help & Info
Popular Stories
As the influence of the internet rises, so does the prevalence of online scams. There are fraudsters making all kinds of claims to trap victims online - from fake investment opportunities to online stores - and the internet allows them to operate from any part of the world with anonymity. The ability to spot online scams is an important skill to have as the virtual world is increasingly becoming a part of every facet of our lives. The below tips will help you identify the signs which can indicate that a website could be a scam. Common Sense: Too Good To Be True When looking for goods online, a great deal can be very enticing. A Gucci bag or a new iPhone for half the price? Who wouldn’t want to grab such a deal? Scammers know this too and try to take advantage of the fact. If an online deal looks too good to be true, think twice and double-check things. The easiest way to do this is to simply check out the same product at competing websites (that you trust). If the difference in prices is huge, it might be better to double-check the rest of the website. Check Out the Social Media Links Social media is a core part of ecommerce businesses these days and consumers often expect online shops to have a social media presence. Scammers know this and often insert logos of social media sites on their websites. Scratching beneath the surface often reveals this fu
So the worst has come to pass - you realise you parted with your money too fast, and the site you used was a scam - what now? Well first of all, don’t despair!! If you think you have been scammed, the first port of call when having an issue is to simply ask for a refund. This is the first and easiest step to determine whether you are dealing with a genuine company or scammers. Sadly, getting your money back from a scammer is not as simple as just asking. If you are indeed dealing with scammers, the procedure (and chance) of getting your money back varies depending on the payment method you used. PayPal Debit card/Credit card Bank transfer Wire transfer Google Pay Bitcoin PayPal If you used PayPal, you have a strong chance of getting your money back if you were scammed. On their website, you can file a dispute within 180 calendar days of your purchase. Conditions to file a dispute: The simplest situation is that you ordered from an online store and it has not arrived. In this case this is what PayPal states: "If your order never shows up and the seller can't provide proof of shipment or delivery, you'll get a full refund. It's that simple." The scammer has sent you a completely different item. For example, you ordered a PlayStation 4, but instead received only a Playstation controller. The condition of the item was misrepresented on the product page. This could be the
