Scams targeting consumers are on the rise, with increasing complexity and volume, according to a recent report by Visa. Here are the key highlights:

1. Increased Volume and Complexity:

• Despite a decrease in the number of individual scam reports from June to December, the total money lost has risen, indicating more effective and costly scams.
• Scammers are leveraging heightened emotions and advanced technologies like generative AI to create more convincing schemes.

2. Top Consumer Scams:

• Pig Butchering Scams: Exploiting holidays like Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve, scammers lure victims into online relationships and fake cryptocurrency trading platforms. These scams have resulted in billions of dollars in losses.
• Inheritance Scams: Victims are tricked into believing they have inherited wealth from a long-lost relative, often through seemingly legitimate entities. Red flags include secrecy, urgency, and requests for payment.
• Humanitarian Relief Scams: Exploiting tragic events, scammers solicit donations through social media, preying on unsuspecting donors.
• Triangulation Fraud: Scammers set up fake online storefronts offering cheap products, compromising payment information and causing losses to merchants.

3. Threats to Organizations:

• Network Vulnerabilities: Threat actors target supply chains and third-party services, exploiting vulnerabilities with AI to bypass fraud controls implemented by banks.
• Ransomware: Cases have surged by 300% from June to December 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. Financial organizations remain prime targets for ransomware attacks.

4. Financial Impact:

• Purchase Return Authorization (PRA) fraud attacks increased by 83% over the previous five-month period, resulting in potential losses of approximately $115,000 per successful attack.

Conclusion:

The Visa report underscores the escalating threat landscape, emphasizing the need for heightened vigilance and robust cybersecurity measures by both consumers and organizations to combat evolving scams and fraud schemes.