Shocking! Americans lose billions a year to Internet fraud. It’s not better in Europe either

The most common are investment, romantic and purchase fraud.

The FTC announced that Americans lost $1.1 billion last year alone to investment scams that started on social media. They often start with an announcement or ad offering a program that supposedly helps people learn how to invest, promising fast and high returns.

However, the most frequently reported type of fraud is when shopping. More than 40 percent of Americans who lost money to social media scams last year blamed shopping-related ads, many of which took them to “unknown websites” to order a product they never received. The agency also pointed out the problem of romance scams, for which almost 60 percent of victims in 2025 stated that they started precisely on social networks.

Most of these scams started on Facebook, with WhatsApp and Instagram coming in “a distant second and third place,” the FTC noted. A lawsuit filed last week against Meta, which owns all three platforms, alleged that the company misled users about fake ads. During the year 2025, it was reported that Meta is making billions of dollars from ads promoting scams and illegal products.

The situation in Europe and Croatia is not better

The problem is not limited to the United States. Huge losses were also recorded in Europe, and it is estimated that in 2025 alone, social networks generated around 4.4 billion euros in revenue from fake ads aimed at European users. The most common forms of fraud are similar to those in the USA, with a special emphasis on investment fraud, especially those related to cryptocurrencies, and online shopping fraud.

Croatia is no exception. According to the report of the State Attorney’s Office of the Republic of Croatia for the year 2024, the recorded damage in reported cases of cybercrime amounted to more than 18 million euros. The most common forms of fraud include phishing and various deceptions that induce victims to provide personal information or pay money.

The bigger picture of Internet crime

Of course, other types of Internet scams also stalk ordinary people. The FBI announced earlier this month that Americans reported losing nearly $21 billion to Internet-related crimes in 2025, more than half of which came from cryptocurrency fraud. Artificial intelligence fraud cost Americans about $893 million last year, the FBI said. And that’s just the reported losses – many victims won’t file reports with the FBI or FTC.

The FTC offers some advice on how to protect yourself from social media scams, such as limiting the visibility of your posts so scammers have less specific information to work with and avoiding letting “someone you’ve only met on social media guide your investment decisions.” The agency also strongly suggests searching for the company name along with the words “fraud” or “complaint” before you buy anything.

As always, be careful, do your own research and if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Be careful.