RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina consumers told federal regulators they lost more than $1 billion to scams over the last five years, and the yearly total has gone up every single year since 2021.
Reported losses grew from roughly $95 million in 2021 to a little more than $342 million in 2025, according to a review of Federal Trade Commission complaint data. The number of complaints barely moved over that span, from about 71,000 in 2021 to about 74,000 in 2025, with dips in the years between, which means each report is carrying a much bigger dollar figure.
The figures cover complaints filed with the FTC and with other groups that share records with the agency. A complaint is not proof a scam happened, and many people who are cheated never report it at all, so the real toll is likely higher.
FBI numbers point the same direction. The bureau’s Internet Crime Complaint Center logged about $177.3 million in reported investment fraud losses from North Carolina victims in 2025, plus roughly $58.3 million tied to tech support schemes and about $18.5 million in romance and confidence scams.
Phishing and spoofing produced the most victims of any category in the state that year, at 7,784, and the FBI tagged about $15.6 million in North Carolina losses as connected to artificial intelligence.
The type of scam varies from place to place. Mecklenburg County posted the highest per-person rate in the state in eight of the 47 scam categories the FTC tracks, including online shopping, where it logged nearly 7,000 complaints in five years. Brunswick County on the coast led in six categories, among them romance, tech support and timeshare or vacation offers.
Some scams appear to go largely unreported. Durham County had only seven complaints about immigration services fraud in five years, yet that was enough to give it the top per-capita rate for that category. The FTC has said in the past that Latino communities file reports at lower rates than the general public.
The North Carolina Department of Justice advises people to confirm a business or website is real before handing over money or personal details. Anyone who thinks they were targeted can file a complaint with the department, and with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center and the FTC. The state office does not bring criminal charges itself but works with law enforcement partners.
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