BBB report tracks major shift in scams nationwide
Most-scammed demographic now adults 18-24
The Better Business Bureau has released a new national report on scams nationwide and it contains some startling new data.
For the first time ever, young adults fell victim to scams more frequently than any other demographic — even more than senior citizens, the previous leader.
Stephanie Garland of the Better Business Bureau says those ages 18 to 24 have most commonly fell victim to fake checks.
She says that’s probably because most young people are no longer using checks, preferring Venmo, Cash App, PayPal and other digital transactions.
“This is highly unusual. This is a very big shift we’re seeing,” Garland states.
“We’re seeing scams involving online payment systems spike and we know that’s because of COVID-19. We have seen a lot of changes in our data this year and a lot of things point back to this pandemic.”
She says as online purchases have increased during the pandemic so have online scams.
Garland says one of the most impersonated brands is Amazon dot com.
You go online check out the complete BBB Scam-Tracker Risk Report.