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Fewer Scam Reports, Higher Losses: Australia’s 2025 Scam Landscape

Total Reports Drop, But Financial Losses Rise

australians reported 108,305 scams and $174.8 million in financial losses to Scamwatch in the first half of 2025, the australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) revealed. Scammers primarily used fake websites, online advertisements, and social media to target victims.

this represents a 24% decrease in the total number of reports compared to the same period last year. However, the almost $175 million reported lost is a 26% increase.

Reports involving losses increased by 40.5%, with a higher incidence among those who speak English as a second language (44%) and First Nations Australians (55.3%).

Despite the increase in losses for the first half of 2025, the ACCC noted that the total still represents a 39% decrease compared to the same period in 2023. Financial losses to scams peaked in 2022 and early 2023.

Losses to Phishing, Shopping Scams in 2025

Losses to phishing scams totalled $19.5 million in the first half of 2025.Phishing involves scammers attempting to deceive individuals into providing personal data,such as bank account details or passwords. These losses were partly driven by a rise in cryptocurrency impersonation scams.

ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe stated, “Technology is helping scammers reach more people than ever before, and we see scams becoming more