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The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center reported nearly 61,000 complaints and more than $1.6 billion in losses from government and law-enforcement impersonation scams between January 2025 and July 2026. Of those, 6,833 complaints involving threats of arrest, prosecution, imprisonment, or comparable consequences accounted for almost $36 million in losses. Fraudsters use unsolicited calls, spoofed agency names and phone numbers, and threats of criminal charges, fines, or professional repercussions to pressure victims into immediate payment.
The campaigns have targeted medical practitioners, immigrants, foreign nationals, and international students, with more sophisticated operations using video calls, AI, fake uniforms, and mock government-office settings to appear legitimate. Victims are directed to pay through prepaid cards, wire transfers, cryptocurrency, or cash collected by couriers. The FBI said genuine government and law-enforcement agencies do not demand payment or sensitive information by phone or text and advised recipients to independently verify contacts using publicly listed official agency details.
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The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center updated an alert originally issued in 2022 about scammers impersonating police, federal agents, and other government officials to coerce payments. The FBI reported more than $1.6 billion in losses from January 2025 through July 2026 and advised people to independently verify purported officials using public agency contact information.
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A wave of impersonation scams is targeting individuals through phone calls and text messages, with fraudsters posing as debt collectors, tax agencies, law enforcement, and government departments. Victims report receiving unsolicited communications threatening legal action, arrest, or suspension of licenses unless immediate payment or personal information is provided. Tactics include aggressive language, urgent demands, and the use of official-sounding names or references to government codes to increase credibility. Notable examples include calls from entities like "Champion Strategy Holdings" and "Tax Solutions," as well as text messages purporting to be from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV), all leveraging fear of legal consequences to coerce compliance. Authorities and cybersecurity experts warn that legitimate agencies do not demand payment or sensitive information via unsolicited calls or texts, nor do they threaten arrest or license suspension without due process. Individuals are advised to verify any such claims through official channels, avoid clicking on suspicious links, and never provide personal or financial information in response to these threats. The prevalence and sophistication of these scams highlight the ongoing need for vigilance and public awareness to prevent financial loss and identity theft.
Jul 1, 2026
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said consumers reported losing **$3.5 billion** to imposter scams in 2025, making them the most frequently reported fraud category and marking nearly a threefold increase since 2020. The agency said total reported fraud losses across all categories reached about **$16 billion**, roughly 25% higher than 2024, with especially heavy losses tied to business impersonators, bank impersonators, and government impersonators. Victims lost nearly **$1 billion** to business impersonators and about **$920 million** to government impersonators, while fake bank security alerts were cited as one of the most damaging tactics. The FTC said social media was the most effective delivery channel for these scams, accounting for more than **$2.1 billion** in losses, with **Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram** among the leading platforms used by fraudsters. In response, the agency pointed to its **Impersonation Rule**, which took effect in April 2024, a broader **Never Ever** awareness campaign, and multiple enforcement actions filed in 2025 and 2026; it said those cases have already produced more than **$70 million** in consumer redress. Separate FBI figures cited alongside the FTC data put total U.S. losses from cyber-enabled crime at nearly **$21 billion** in 2025.
Jul 3, 2026
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (**IC3**) has warned that scammers are posing as FBI personnel and IC3 representatives to target people who have already lost money to cybercrime and fraud. The operation uses fake social media profiles, direct messages, phone calls, emails, online forums, spoofed IC3 websites, and **AI-generated videos** of senior FBI officials to falsely claim that stolen funds have been recovered or can be recovered, with the goal of stealing additional personal and financial information. The FBI said the fraudsters often contact victims on platforms such as Facebook Messenger before moving conversations to apps like Telegram, where they may send links that harvest data or contain malicious code. Deepfake videos have also been used to steer victims to fake complaint portals designed to mimic `ic3.gov` and collect sensitive details about prior losses. IC3 stressed that it has **no social media presence**, does not initiate contact through social media, chat apps, phone, or email to recover money, and never asks victims to pay fees for fund recovery; legitimate follow-up would come from an FBI employee or another law enforcement official.
Aug 11, 2026