Misryoum reports social media scams cost Americans $2.1B in 2025, with Facebook a key channel. Shopping, investment and romance schemes dominate—here’s how to protect yourself.
Americans lost $2.1 billion to social media scams in 2025, a figure that underscores how quickly fraudsters are adapting to everyday online behavior.
The pattern is clear: Misryoum data points to social platforms as the entry point for a growing share of scam losses. with the highest reported losses linked to Facebook.. That matters because social apps aren’t just marketing spaces anymore—they’re where trust is built. identities are imitated. and victims are nudged toward payment.. Nearly 30% of people who reported losing money to scams said the scheme began on social media. suggesting that for many households the first “red flag” shows up only after money has already changed hands.
A closer look at scam types shows why the damage is so persistent.. Shopping scams were the most reported form. with over 40% of social-media scam victims saying they ordered items they saw in ads.. The ads often promise something ordinary—clothing. cosmetics. even car parts—and then route buyers to unfamiliar websites or fake pages designed to look legitimate. including stores claiming to offer steep discounts from well-known brands.. For consumers, this is particularly damaging because the purchase flow feels familiar: click, confirm, pay.. The scam is less about technical sophistication than about frictionless persuasion.
Investment fraud is where the stakes can rise fastest.. Misryoum’s figures indicate investment scams tied to social media produced $1.1 billion in losses.. These schemes frequently begin with ads or posts that claim to teach investing. then evolve into something more coercive: scammers posing as friendly advisors. or using messaging apps like WhatsApp to create groups filled with fabricated success stories.. The same dynamic shows up in romance scams. where victims report that nearly 60% of romance losses started on a social platform.. In these cases. scammers tailor their pitch to a person’s profile and relationships—then introduce a manufactured “crisis” that demands money. or steer victims toward a fake investment site.
What’s happening beneath the surface is a shift in how scams travel.. Social media allows fraudsters to combine targeting, storytelling, and escalation in a single ecosystem.. A user can be identified quickly. drawn in through content that matches their interests. and then moved to a more controlled channel—private chats. closed groups. or payment pages—where verification is harder.. Misryoum sees this as a key reason social media scams can outpace older methods: the platform doesn’t just host the scam. it actively improves its reach and realism.
The human impact is easy to underestimate until you zoom in on daily life.. Shopping scams don’t only take money; they often create a second wave of stress when packages don’t arrive or refunds prove impossible.. Investment and romance scams can damage trust in personal relationships and long-term financial planning, turning online connections into emotional leverage.. Misryoum recommends treating the “journey” to payment as the danger zone, not just the moment you spot something suspicious.
So what can consumers do in practical terms?. Misryoum highlights three protective behaviors that map directly to the scam playbook: tighten privacy settings so fewer strangers can reach you; never let someone you met online control your investment decisions; and before buying. verify the company and the claim—search the name alongside terms like “scam” or “complaint.” When scams rely on fake brand pages and discount bait. the simplest defense is slow down and verify. even if the offer feels urgent.
There’s also a broader lesson for the market.. When Misryoum sees scams concentrating around particular platforms and formats—ads that lead to unfamiliar sites. investment “training” funnels. and romance-to-payment escalations—it suggests that prevention won’t be purely technical.. It will require more consumer literacy about how fraudsters use normal online behaviors as cover.. The trend is not just that scammers are active; it’s that they’re learning how people move through social apps—and they’re meeting them there.