BBB investigation shows how lax regulations allow scammers to use legal tools, steal billions
Milwaukee, Wis. – Over half of all Americans encounter a scam every day. Better Business Bureau (BBB) data shows Scam Tracker reports increasing each year. Over $68 billion was lost to financial fraud last year, and over 98% of Americans said scams pose a threat to national security.
With the nearly unanimous disdain for scams across North America, many ask: Why can’t scams be stopped? And why do scams seem to be getting worse?
Since 2022, BBB Scam Tracker reports have totaled more than 433,000. BBB’s International Investigations Initiative (III) used an artificial intelligence model to analyze these reports, providing a unique glimpse into the patterns developing across the North American scam landscape and the methods and tools used to steal from consumers.
In the new study “Blueprint of a scam” the III examines patterns of reports and shares stories to highlight the tools scammers use in their fraud and give suggestions on how strengthened regulations could help protect the public.
Since 2021, the III has laid out ways consumers and businesses can avoid scams and significant monetary loss. Previous studies examined job scams, business scams, online gambling, vehicle purchases, identity theft and much more.
Key findings:
- Scam texts and calls have quickly become the top vector for scam outreach
- Scammers use legitimate services like Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone numbers, robocallers, website templates, artificial intelligence and social media for illegal scams
- Platforms struggle to remove scammers fast enough to stop the issue
Data across North America
| BBB data on scam methods | ||
| Year | Texts | Phone calls |
| 2023 | 5,985 | 12,562 |
| 2024 | 8,000 | 19,403 |
| 2025 | 21,839 | 38,523 |
Regulatory suggestions
- Strengthen and expand the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) to broaden the types of calls included and give text messages the same protections.
- Remove the $50,000 loss requirement on private suits under the TSR to incentivize individuals to be able to pursue remedy.
- Require a $200,000 bond for national VoIP companies to be tapped in cases where payment is needed due to fraud judgements.
- Broaden “Know Your Customer” rules to better monitor who is using services and create a record for future investigations.
- Carve out a space in Section 230 to combat fraud and allow TCPA and TSR type laws to operate.
How can consumers protect themselves from scam calls and texts?
- Let unknown calls go to voicemail. If the call is important, the person will leave a message.
- New numbers don’t mean new scams. Scammers can change their phone number on the fly and will often do so as a part of the same scam.
- Turn on your phone’s spam filter. It’s not perfect, but filters can help prevent a large amount of scam calls from ever reaching your phone.
- Read more from BBB. Scams come in various forms. BBB.org/scamstudies can prepare you for any fraud you might encounter.
Visit BBB.org to check out a business or register a complaint, BBB Scam TrackerSM to report a scam and BBB.org/scamstudies for more on this and other scams.
View the online version
For more information or further inquiries, contact the Wisconsin BBB at www.bbb.org/wisconsin, 414-847-6000 or 1-800-273-1002. Consumers also can find more information about how to protect themselves from scams by following the Wisconsin BBB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
ABOUT BBB: The Better Business Bureau has empowered people to find businesses, brands, and charities they can trust for more than 110 years. In 2024, people turned to BBB.org more than 220 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 5.5 million businesses, and 725,000 times for BBB charity reports on 12,000 local and national charities. The International Association of Better Business Bureaus is the umbrella organization for the local, independent BBBs in the United States and Canada.
