Reports of scam losses topped $1 billion in North Carolina over five years

Scam-related losses reported by North Carolina consumers topped $1 billion over five years, according to an analysis of Federal Trade Commission data provided to Enlace Latino NC by The Associated Press. The amount of money reported as lost increased every year from 2021 through 2025. It rose from about $95 million in 2021 to just over $342 million in 2025.

The number of reports did not grow at the same pace. There were 71,000 scam reports in 2021 and 74,000 in 2025, but the number dipped in the intervening years. Those numbers show only part of the problem.

The data reflect what consumers reported both directly to the FTC as well as other scam-tracking institutions that share data with the federal agency. A report does not mean authorities verified that a scam occurred, and many people who experience a scam never file one. AP created an interactive tool that allows readers to explore scam reports in North Carolina counties.

Student journalists at Indiana University’s Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism helped AP analyze the data. What doesn’t appear in the reports One category in particular illustrates the limits of what these data can tell us. In Durham County, where about 350,000 people live, just seven reports were classified as immigration services scams during the five years.

Despite the small number, they were enough to give Durham the highest per-capita rate in North Carolina for that category. The FTC has been aware for years of concerns involving immigration services scams in North Carolina. Citizenship and Immigration Services held an event in Durham focused on consumer protection in immigrant communities that addressed, among other issues, immigration services and notario scams.

The low number of reports raises a question: How many of the scams affecting immigrant communities are not reported? These data cannot answer that question. However, the FTC has previously acknowledged that it receives reports from Latino communities at a lower rate than from the general population and has identified potential barriers to reporting, including not knowing where to report, distrust of government and concerns related to immigration status.