US adults lose $68 billion to scams in 2025, mental‑health toll revealed

A Gallup poll of 5,173 U.S. adults found that 6 % were personally scammed in 2025 and another 4 % lived in households where someone was scammed, representing roughly one in ten U.S. households. The estimated total loss was $68 billion, about $186 million stolen each day. The average loss per victim was $5,578, though 56 % of scams cost $500 or less.

Nearly three‑quarters (73 %) of victims said the experience negatively affected their mental health or wellbeing, with 28 % describing a very negative impact. Among households affected, 21 % reported severe financial hardship and another 25 % moderate hardship. The poll noted higher victimisation rates among adults without a bachelor’s degree (7 % vs. 4 %) and among Black (8 %) and Hispanic (9 %) adults compared with white adults (5 %).

Twelve percent of successful scams involved artificial‑intelligence tools or deepfakes, a figure the researchers believe is under‑counted. "These guys aren't called organized crime for nothing. They're actually organized, and they're using their organization to start attacking us with scale now to a tune of $68 billion," said Stop Scams Alliance founder Ken Westbrook. "The data suggest the cost of scams extends beyond what can be measured in dollars, as nearly three in four victims say the experience negatively affected their mental health or wellbeing."