In a concerning revelation for the Lone Star State, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) has released data showing that Texans reported losing over $10 million to scams in 2024. Detailed analysis of over 6,000 "BBB Scam Tracker" reports submitted by Texas residents throughout the year paints a troubling picture of fraud's ever-rising tide. According to CBS Austin, this total marks an all-time high for losses since the BBB began tracking scam reports back in 2014.
It appears the most affected age group were those nestled between life's fragile middle, with Texans aged 45-54 and 55-64 reporting the highest total losses, at $2.8 million and $2.7 million respectively. "Over the past few years, our data is showing a sharp increase in scam activity resulting in millions of dollars being lost," Heather Massey, vice president of communications and community relations at Better Business Bureau serving the Heart of Texas, told KXAN. The malignance of investment and cryptocurrency scams proved most costly, siphoning off more than $3.1 million from unwitting victims—a stark increase of $2 million from the year before.
Not far behind in the nefarious rankings, employment scams remained stable in frequency but saw a surge in financial damage, with a loss increase of over $1 million from the previous year. Despite the relative stability in occurrence, those aged 25-34 suffered 47% of the total losses to employment scam, indicating a particularly vulnerable demographic, per the BBB press release covered by KXAN.
Online shopping, an activity many consider innocuous, was far from harmless. It was identified as the most reported scam type, roping unwitting consumers into a web of deceit that ranged from every day purchases to larger assets like cars and boats. Victims found themselves parting with approximately $1.5 million in 2024, an annual loss figure mirroring that of the year prior. BBB's collected data points to an adaptable criminal strategy, with phishing scams leveraging sophisticated approaches through SMS texts, voice calls, and QR codes to separate victims from their hard-earned cash. However, losses to phishing actually showed a $200,000 decrease compared to 2023, according to the information reported by CBS Austin.
Last in the list of top scams but no less destructive were romance scams, which skyrocketed by 877%. This type of fraud, often characterized by a prolonged emotional con, drained close to $500,000 from Texans, with those aged 45-54 accounting for half of the losses. This reflects the implementation of long-game tactics by scammers who steadily built trust before exploiting it for financial gain. Texans suspecting they've fallen prey to such scams are encouraged to report their experiences to the BBB online, as stated in KXAN's coverage.
