# Americans lost $18 billion to cyberscams last year > A Congressional investigation finds the U.S. government's response is fragmented, leaving victims with little hope of recovering stolen funds. - Title: Americans lost $18 billion to cyberscams last year · TIME - Summary: A Congressional investigation finds the U.S. government's response is fragmented, leaving victims with little hope of recovering stolen funds. Americans lost… - Keywords: cyberscams, cybercrime, congress, maggie hassan, don beyer, fbi, fraud recovery, senior citizens, artificial intelligence, social media, deepfakes, news - Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/10/31/americans-lost-nearly-18-billion-last-year-to-cyberscams-is-washington-doing-enough-to-help-them-get-it-back- - Author: Rebecca Schneid - Published: 2026-10-31T12:30:00+00:00 - Read time: 3 min - Topics: cyberscams, cybercrime, congress, maggie hassan, don beyer, fbi, fraud recovery, senior citizens, artificial intelligence, social media, deepfakes, news ## Congress finds fragmented response An investigation by Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee, led by Sen.Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Rep. ## Eighteen billion dollars lost in twenty twenty-five The FBI reported that Americans lost nearly eighteen billion dollars to cyberscams in twenty twenty-five, amounting to more than two million dollars an hour. ## Only a fraction of losses recovered The FBI returned three hundred thirty-six million dollars to scam victims in twenty twenty-five. The Secret Service returned more than seven hundred seventy million dollars in seized assets to fraud victims in fiscal years twenty… ## Fragmentation complicates understanding Suzanne Sando, a fraud analyst at Javelin Strategy and Research, says differing time periods and fraud categories across agencies complicate the government's grasp of the problem. > The fragmented nature of these reporting entities means there's a lack of true accounting of losses. ## ReportScams.Gov Act proposed The Congressional report calls for the ReportScams.Gov Act, a bipartisan bill co-sponsored by Sen.Hassan and Florida Republican Sen. ## Seniors hit hardest by scams Americans ages sixty and older reported losses of about seven point seven billion dollars in twenty twenty-five, a sixty percent increase from twenty twenty-four. ## Minors also targeted Individuals under eighteen reported nearly thirteen million dollars in losses across thirteen thousand one hundred sixty-eight internet-crime complaints in twenty twenty-five, according to the FBI's twenty twenty-five Internet Crime Report. ## Underreporting hides true scale Experts say cyberscams are underreported because victims feel embarrassed, fear judgment, and believe recovery will be impossible.A stronger, coordinated response could give victims confidence to report crimes in a timely manner, making enforcement more effective. ## AI and deepfakes fuel scams Suzanne Sando says the growing use of artificial intelligence has been partly responsible for rising scams. > Through AI, criminals can create more convincing and polished messages, fake social media profiles, and deepfake voices and videos with less time and effort. ## Vulnerable populations now online Jake Braun, executive director of the Cyber Policy Initiative at the University of Chicago, says super at-risk populations who were not online before are now exposed. ## Southeast Asian scam compounds Many scams are run by organized criminal networks operating in Southeast Asia, where scam compounds often use trafficked workers forced to defraud people online. The scale and complexity make recovery difficult for law enforcement. ## Hundreds of officials, millions of victims Jake Braun says there are just a hundred or so top law enforcement officials working on cyberscams affecting millions of victims across dozens of countries. > It's $1,000 bucks from somebody's grandma here, and it's $500 bucks there, that collectively is billions and billions. ## Private sector lacks clear responsibility Suzanne Sando says within the private sector there is a lack of clear ownership and responsibility.Scams can span multiple platforms, requiring coordinated effort across financial services, telcos, and social media to prevent and detect fraud. ## Social media companies must be held accountable Jake Braun says holding social media companies accountable is one of the most tangible ways governments could address scams before they happen. > They know everything about every click that's made on their platform. This problem wouldn't exist if those platforms didn't exist. ## Prevention must target vulnerable groups Braun says the government should include education components in cyber grants to state and local governments, tailored to protect seniors, minors, and migrants. A comprehensive solution requires understanding how specific communities are impacted by scams. ## Key takeaway Americans lost nearly eighteen billion dollars to cyberscams in twenty twenty-five, but the fragmented federal response means most victims never recover their money.