FTC: Americans lost $1.1 billion to impersonation scams in 2023

FTC data shows U.S. impersonation scams led to over $1.1B in losses in 2023 across 490,000 reports, with tactics including fake security alerts, phony renewals, bogus giveaways, legal threats, and delivery issue scams delivered via phone, email, and SMS. The FTC is enacting new rules to pursue impersonators for civil penalties and restitution while advising consumers to avoid unsolicited links, distrust money transfer requests, and verify suspicious communications.