More Americans Are Falling Victim to Financial Fraud and Scams

2 in 5 adults (40%) have experienced some type of financial fraud or scam in the past year, up from 34% in 2025

NEW YORK – March 4, 2026 – Two in five adults (40%) say they have experienced some type of financial fraud or scam in the past year (i.e., since January 2025), up from 34% in 2025, according to a new Bankrate survey. The majority of Americans (73%) have experienced a financial scam or fraud at some point, also up from 68% a year ago.

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As for the types of financial scams or fraud Americans experienced, 35% say someone either accessed or attempted to access their personal financial information, such as their bank account, credit cards or social security number. Among those who were targeted, 93% say the attempts were unsuccessful.

Overall, 11% of Americans say they lost money as a result of financial fraud or scam. This includes those who sent funds to a scammer or paid for a phony service (7%) or someone took their funds after accessing their personal or financial information (4%).

“Americans are under enormous financial stress right now, drawing down savings, living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to afford both wants and needs. Scammers know it,” says Bankrate analyst Sarah Foster. “Fraudsters are getting more sophisticated thanks to artificial intelligence, and they’re reaching more people than ever. It might be wishful thinking at this point to assume you’ll never come across someone attempting to steal your information or your money.”

More than half of Americans (52%) think it is likely that they will be personally targeted by a financial scam in the next 12 months, up from 37% in 2025. This includes 18% who say it is very likely they will be targeted by a financial scam, up from 11% last year. On the other hand, 33% say it is unlikely that they will be personally targeted by a financial scam in the next 12 months, down from 39% in 2025. Notably, 59% of those who have ever experienced financial fraud or a scam think another incident is likely within the next year, with this figure rises to 71% among those who have experienced it since January 2025.

Most Americans (95%) have taken at least one step over the past 12 months to protect their finances from financial fraud or scams. These steps include avoiding suspicious links or emails (79%), regularly (i.e., at least once every few months) monitoring financial accounts (67%) and enabling two-factor authentication for personal accounts (61%). Further, more than half (55%) this year say they have shredded sensitive documents before disposal, 49% have monitored their credit report for errors at least once, 48% have updated their personal accounts with strong, unique passwords 44% have set up spam filters, 32% have reported suspicious activity or charges and 22% have researched information on common types of scams.

“There’s no foolproof way to avoid being targeted by a scam anymore, and even Americans who take these steps can fall victim to fraud,” Foster says. “If you think you’ve been scammed, it’s important to act quickly. Contact your bank right away, report it to the Federal Trade Commission, place a fraud alert on your credit reports or lock your accounts if needed.”

Methodology:

This study was conducted by SSRS on its Opinion Panel Omnibus platform. The SSRS Opinion Panel Omnibus is a national, twice-per-month, probability-based survey. Data collection was conducted from January 16 – January 20, 2026, among a sample of 1,007 respondents. The survey was conducted via web (n=977) and telephone (n=30) and administered in English. The margin of error for total respondents is +/-3.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. All SSRS Opinion Panel Omnibus data are weighted to represent the target population of U.S. adults ages 18 or older.

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For more information:
Sara Dramer
Public Relations Manager
sdramer@bankrate.com | 929-205-9713