Social media has become a cash cow for scammers. New data from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reveals a surge in fraud linked to social platforms, with consumers reporting $2.1 billion in losses in 2025 alone.

Key takeaways:

• Social media scams inflicted $2.1 billion in reported losses in 2025
• Nearly 1 in 3 scam victims said the fraud started on a social platform
• Losses have grown eight-fold since 2020
• Investment scams caused the biggest financial damage
• Shopping scams remain the most common type

The costliest scam method

Nearly 30% of people who lost money to scams said the interaction began on social media.

Social media scams caused far more losses than any other contact method that scammers use to reach consumers—an eight-fold increase since 2020, according to the report.

Social media is now the most costly scam contact method, outpacing email, text, and other channels.  

“Social media creates easy access to billions of people from anywhere in the world, making a scammer’s job easier at very little cost,” the FTC said. “Scammers may hack a user’s account, exploit what a user posts to figure out how to target them, or buy ads and use the same tools used by real businesses to target people by age, interests or shopping habits.”

Facebook leads the pack

Scams that started on Facebook caused far greater losses than on any other social media platform. WhatsApp and Instagram were a distant second and third, according to the data spotlight.

“In 2025, people reported losing far more money to scams on Facebook alone than they reported losing to text or email scams,” the FTC notes.

All age groups, except for those 80 and over, reported losing more money to scams that started on social media than any other contact method. For those 80 and over, social media still ranked second, after scams conducted over the phone.

According to FTC data, the top three social media scams today are:

• Investment scams: These caused the highest financial losses last year, with victims reporting losses of around $1.1 billion—more than half of all money tied to social media fraud. Many of these schemes begin with ads or posts promising to teach users how to invest. In other cases, scammers pose as helpful financial mentors or create WhatsApp groups filled with fake “successful investors” sharing fabricated success stories.
• Shopping scams: The most commonly reported type, shopping scams, accounted for over 40% of victims who lost money through social media. Many users said they bought items they discovered in ads—ranging from clothing and cosmetics to auto parts and even pets. These ads often redirected to unfamiliar websites or convincing copies of legitimate brands offering steep discounts.
• Romance scams: Social media also plays a major role in romance fraud. Nearly 60% of those who lost money to romance scams in 2025 said the interaction began on a social platform. Scammers typically tailor their approach using details from a person’s profile, then build trust before fabricating an emergency that requires money—or introducing fake investment opportunities to lure victims further.

To reduce the risk of falling victim to social media scams, the FTC recommends a few simple precautions:

• Adjust your privacy settings to limit who can view your posts and personal connections, giving scammers less information to exploit.
• Avoid taking investment advice from people you only know online, especially through social platforms—take time to learn how to recognize common investment scams.
• Research sellers before buying, by looking up the company’s name along with terms like “scam” or “complaint” to spot potential red flags.

How to avoid scams in general – Bitdefender’s advice

As scams and fraud grow more sophisticated and harder to detect—increasingly thanks to AI—we strongly advise consumers to adopt a cautious and proactive approach to digital interactions:

• Be wary of urgent or emotionally charged messages, especially if they involve money. Scammers often impersonate victims’ family members or colleagues, or authorities, using AI-generated voices or deepfakes to create panic and pressure quick decisions.
• Verify requests through a second channel. If you receive a call or message claiming to be from a loved one or an institution you have heard of, hang up and contact the person or organization directly using a trusted number.
• Limit what you share online. Publicly available photos, videos and voice clips can be used to train AI tools for impersonation scams.
• Use strong, unique passwords and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) on financial and email accounts to reduce the risk of unauthorized access.
• Watch out for investment opportunities that promise high or guaranteed returns, particularly those involving cryptocurrencies. They remain among the most common and costly fraud schemes.
• Finally, consider using reputable security software and staying informed about emerging scam tactics.
• When in doubt about an unsolicited phone call, text or social media interaction, use Scamio, our free scam detector and prevention service. Simply describe your situation and let Scamio guide you to safety.

To help people stay ahead of evolving threats, Bitdefender has recently introduced Scam Radar, a new feature integrated into Bitdefender Mobile Security for Android and Bitdefender Mobile Security for iOS.

Scam Radar enhances our existing mobile security defenses with new capabilities aimed at early threat prevention and improving user awareness. It monitors emerging scam campaigns, including local scams, and alerts you before you become a target. Unlike traditional protection, which reacts after a threat is detected, Scam Radar focuses on early warning and prevention by monitoring emerging threats.

Learn more at: https://www.bitdefender.com/en-us/blog/hotforsecurity/scam-radar-bitdefender.

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