Consumer Alert
New trends in reports of imposter scams
Every year, the FTC gets millions of fraud reports from consumers and shares information about the top scams. In what’s not a surprise for anyone who’s followed along in the past, imposter scams were the #1 scam for the ninth year in a row. So, what do we know about these imposter scams?
In 2025, the FTC got more than 1 million reports about imposter scams, with reported losses increasing by nearly 20% to $3.5 billion.
Reports of government imposter scams were up 40%, thanks in part to messages about overdue tolls. These bogus messages might spoof real toll collection programs (like EZ-Pass, SunPass, FasTrak, and TxTag) to seem more credible. And they threaten to charge you late fees or suspend your vehicle’s registration if you don’t pay right away.
Did you get a text message demanding money for unpaid tolls?
Reach out to the state’s toll agency using a phone number or website you know is real. Don’t use the information from the text.
What else does the data reveal? Romance scams were on the rise, according to reports to the FTC. Reported losses increased by 22% to $1.48 million. That comes to a staggering $2,020 per person. Romance scammers play the long game. They build a relationship over time, then one day, the conversation turns to money, and they offer to help you invest yours. But they're not in it to help you. They're in it to rip you off.
Did a new friend or love interest you met online suddenly ask you for money?
It could be a romance scam. Don’t send money to someone you’ve never met in person.
Want to learn more about avoiding and reporting scams? The FTC has more resources to help you
- recognize the signs of a scam,
- develop an action plan to avoid scams, and
- know what to do if you were scammed.
And if you see a scam, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Those reports help our investigators build cases against scammers and help stop them.