(The Center Square) – Nevada residents lost over $138 million to scams in 2024 as one of the most defrauded states, reported the Federal Trade Commission.
The Silver State ranked fourth highest in fraud reports per capita and third highest for identity theft as the U.S. reported $12.5 billion in fraud losses across 2024 – a 25% increase from 2023.
“Scammers’ tactics are constantly evolving,” said Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection in a press release. “The FTC is monitoring those trends closely and working hard to protect the American people from fraud.”
The most commonly reported form of fraud nationally was from imposters, which cost Americans $3 billion. Non-stop texts and calls come from those pretending to be the IRS, a charity or even a family member in need of information or money transfers.
But Americans’ biggest losses came from investment scams, a staggering $5.7 billion nationwide, according to the FTC. These scams cover a variety of illegal activities – from pyramid schemes to crypto currency scams and pump-and-dump plots.
In Nevada, the most fraud reports came from residents 70-79 years-old, with reported losses over $13 million. But the age group with the most lost was 60-69 year-olds, at $17 million. With comparably far fewer reports, the oldest age demographic of 80-year-olds and older felt the highest median loss – $1,922 per case.
With 425 fraud reports per 100,000 residents, Nevada sat only behind Washington, D.C. (594), Georgia (464) and Florida (463) for frauds reported per person.
The Silver State recorded almost half of all scams in two categories – credit bureau and information furnisher fraud, and identity theft.
Across all forms of fraud, the $138.5 million that over 58,000 Nevadans reported to be scammed out of was most commonly in the form of a $519 loss.
For information on how to avoid scams, go to the webpage at Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The section is part of www.fdic.gov.
