New Report Shows How Much Illinoisans Lose To Scams Every Year

In spite of near-constant warnings about scammers and the tricks they pull to get your money and personal information, billions of dollars wind up in the pockets of scam artists every single year here in Illinois and across the country.

It’s easy to think scams only happen to “other people.”

You know the type, someone who clicks the wrong link, answers the wrong phone call, or falls for something that seems obvious in hindsight. But a new report suggests that type of thinking might be exactly why scams continue to work so well.

The reality is that thousands of Illinois residents who never thought it would happen to them are losing serious money. And it happens year after year.

Illinois Residents Are Losing A Stunning Amount Of Money Annually To Scams

How much money qualifies as a stunning amount?

According to a new report from the Consumer Federation of America, Illinois consumers are losing an estimated $3.4 billion annually to scams. That’s not a typo, it's really billion, with a “B.”

What’s even more surprising is how much of that goes unreported.

Official numbers show about $479 million in reported scam losses in Illinois, but experts say that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The same report estimates that only about 14 percent of scam victims actually report what happened, often because of embarrassment, confusion, or simply not knowing where to turn.

In other words, the real number is likely far higher than what shows up in official statistics.

Zoom Out To The National Level, And The Numbers Get Really Big

Americans as a whole are estimated to lose around $119 billion each year to online scams, which turns out to be more than seven times higher than what’s officially reported to the FBI.

The thing to remember about this is that scams aren’t just targeting the careless or the uninformed.

They’re sophisticated. They’re emotional. They’re designed to catch people off guard, whether it’s a fake package notification, a convincing bank alert, or even someone posing as a government official. Many scams now happen through platforms people use every day, including social media and email.

That’s why experts say the biggest misconception about scams is also the most dangerous one, that it won’t happen to you. Because for thousands of Illinoisans every year, it already has.