As the holiday gift-giving season kicks off, many Americans are wary of online scams. The vast majority of U.S. adults (85%) say online scams and attacks are a problem on shopping sites and apps, according to a spring Pew Research Center survey. This includes 50% who say they’re a major problem.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted April 14-20, 2025.
| % | Category | |
|---|---|---|
| Online hackers stole their credit or debit card info and made fraudulent charges | 48 | Other |
| Bought an item online that either was counterfeit or never arrived and wasn’t refunded | 36 | Other |
| A personal online account (e.g., a social media, email, bank or payment app account) was taken over/accessed without permission | 29 | Other |
| A scam email, text message or call led them to give away personal info | 24 | Other |
| Ransomware blocked them from using their computer until they paid money | 10 | Other |
| Gave money online in a fake investment opportunity (e.g., for stocks, bonds or real estate) | 7 | Other |
| NET Experienced at least one of these online scams or attacks | 73 | NET |
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted April 14-20, 2025.
Sizable shares also say they have personally experienced such scams. Overall, 36% of U.S. adults say they’ve ever bought an item online that either never arrived (31%) or was counterfeit (17%) and was not refunded. And 12% of Americans say they experienced at least one of these issues within the past year.
Of the six types of online scams and attacks we asked about in our survey, online shopping incidents were among the most common.
Related: For shopping, phones are common and influencers have become a factor – especially for young adults
Experiences of online shopping scams by demographic group
Note: White, Black and Asian adults include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanic adults are of any race. Family income tiers are based on adjusted 2023 earnings. “Bought an item online that either was counterfeit or never arrived and wasn’t refunded” was originally asked as two separate items; that figure includes those who say either or both has happened. Includes those who responded “Yes, happened in the past 12 months” or “Yes, happened but more than 12 months ago.” Those who did not give an answer are not shown.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted April 14-20, 2025.
| % | Category | |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. adults | 36 | Total |
| Men | 35 | Gender |
| Women | 37 | Gender |
| Ages 18-29 | 42 | Age |
| 30-49 | 40 | Age |
| 50-64 | 37 | Age |
| 65+ | 26 | Age |
| White | 33 | Race/ethnicity |
| Black | 41 | Race/ethnicity |
| Hispanic | 43 | Race/ethnicity |
| Asian* | 35 | Race/ethnicity |
| Lower income | 40 | Household income |
| Middle income | 36 | Household income |
| Upper income | 33 | Household income |
| Some college or less | 38 | Education |
| College grad+ | 34 | Education |
Note: White, Black and Asian adults include those who report being only one race and are not Hispanic. Hispanic adults are of any race. Family income tiers are based on adjusted 2023 earnings. “Bought an item online that either was counterfeit or never arrived and wasn’t refunded” was originally asked as two separate items; that figure includes those who say either or both has happened. Includes those who responded “Yes, happened in the past 12 months” or “Yes, happened but more than 12 months ago.” Those who did not give an answer are not shown.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted April 14-20, 2025.
The vast majority of Americans (92%) say they ever buy things online. Even so, some demographic groups are more likely than others to say they’ve experienced e-commerce scams while shopping online:
- Americans under 30 (42%) are much more likely than those ages 65 and older (26%) to say they’ve ever bought something online that was counterfeit or never delivered and they weren’t reimbursed.
- Hispanic (43%) and Black adults (41%) are more likely than White adults (33%) to say they’ve experienced at least one of these online shopping scams. Roughly a third of Asian adults (35%) say the same.
Men and women are about equally likely to say they have fallen victim to e-commerce scams. And experiences differ little by education level: Adults with some college experience or less education are only slightly more likely than college graduates to say they’ve experienced at least one of these online shopping scams (38% vs. 34%).
How have the number of online shopping scams changed in recent years?
Source: FTC, Consumer Sentinel Network Database.
| Year | Number |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 434,002 |
| 2021 | 462,949 |
| 2022 | 368,419 |
| 2023 | 380,750 |
| 2024 | 387,398 |
Source: FTC, Consumer Sentinel Network Database.
Over 387,000 reports of fraud involving online shopping were filed in the United States in 2024, according to data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). That figure was up from the previous two years, but down from nearly 463,000 in 2021.
The FTC uses a broader definition than our survey, describing online shopping fraud as reports of “undisclosed costs, failure to deliver on time, non-delivery and refusal to honor a guarantee on purchases made online, and internet auctions.” Its data is based on direct consumer reports and those filed through other organizations, as well as with federal, state, local and international law enforcement agencies.
Online shopping fraud was responsible for a reported $434.4 million in 2024, with victims facing a median loss of $130. That’s up from 2021, when reported losses totaled $394.3 million, though consumers’ median loss was higher that year ($150).
The real figures may be even higher, however, since scams – like many other types of crime – often go unreported. In fact, 74% of adults who say they’ve ever lost money due to an online scam or attack, shopping-related or otherwise, said in our April survey that they did not report the incident to law enforcement.
Note: Here are the questions used for this analysis, the topline and the survey methodology.
