A new Gallup/Stop Scams Alliance survey finds that one in 10 U.S. adults said someone in their household lost money or gave scammers access to a financial account in 2025.
Nearly half of affected households reported losses exceeding $500, yet only a small minority reported the crime to law enforcement or federal authorities.
The findings suggest Americans overwhelmingly believe government and private companies need to do more to stop scams before they reach consumers.
Americans are facing an onslaught of increasingly sophisticated scams, but most victims never report the crimes to law enforcement, according to a new survey from Gallup and the Stop Scams Alliance.
The nationwide survey found that about one in 10 U.S. adults said they or another member of their household were tricked by scammers in 2025 into losing money or giving criminals access to a financial account. Nearly half of those households reported losing more than $500.
The findings paint a picture of a country inundated by fraud attempts while lacking confidence that reporting scams will make a difference.
According to the survey, many victims chose not to contact authorities because they doubted they would recover their money or were unsure where to report the crime. Only a small share reported scams to local police or federal agencies, although more than half notified their bank or financial institution.
Just part of modern life
The Gallup findings mirror those of a separate Associated Press-NORC poll, which found that scam attempts have become a routine part of daily life for many Americans. More than half of adults said they receive suspicious texts, emails, phone calls, or online messages every day, while older Americans reported the highest rates of daily scam attempts.
The survey also found that scam losses are widespread. About half of the households that fell victim reported losing between $125 and $2,000, and roughly one in 10 adults said they had been scammed multiple times.
No confidence
Despite the prevalence of fraud, Americans expressed little confidence that enough is being done to combat it. According to the Gallup survey, about 80% of respondents believe the federal government is not doing enough to protect consumers from scams. Many also said banks, telecommunications companies, technology firms, and social media platforms should play a larger role in preventing fraudulent communications from reaching consumers.
The Stop Scams Alliance, a nonprofit that advocates public-private cooperation to combat financial fraud, says prevention should become the primary focus. The organization argues that stopping scam calls, texts, and online messages before consumers ever see them would be more effective than relying on victims to recover losses afterward.