Truecaller Releases Its Eighth Annual "Insights U.S. Spam & Scam Report"

The report shows that $39.5 Billion USD were lost to phone scams in the U.S., a 32.5% increase from 2021. 68.4 million Americans have fallen victim to a phone scam in the past 12 months; a large jump from 59.4 million in 2021 and 56 million in 2020.

Truecaller, the world’s leading caller ID and spam blocking app, today published its eighth annual “Insights U.S. Spam & Scam Report”. The research was conducted in partnership with The Harris Poll in March of 2022, and the findings detail trends/insights on the impact of spam and phone scams that have increasingly permeated the U.S. over the last 12 months. The study estimates that $39.5 billion was lost to phone scams this past year, which is the highest number recorded since Truecaller began researching scam and spam calls in the U.S. eight years ago. 

According to the study, one out of three Americans (33%) report having fallen victim to phone scams, and 20% on more than one occasion. Of those who lost money to phone scams in the last year, the average reported loss was $577, up 14.9% from $502  in 2021, and robocallers were reported to have duped 61.1% of these people.

Key Findings of the Report Include: 

The number of spam calls received by Americans increased compared to the previous year, indicating that the STIR/SHAKEN protocols mandated by Congress have not had the desired effect.

Men get scammed more than women: 55.6% of those who fell victim to a phone scam were men, compared to only 42.2% who were women.

Seniors are targeted disproportionately: American seniors (65+) reported a higher average of monthly spam calls and texts than their younger counterparts.

Hispanics fall victim to scams at a higher rate: Hispanics – although they received less spam calls and texts overall – are more likely to have fallen victim to phone scams in their lifetime. A staggering 74% of Hispanic respondents have lost money to a robocall.

Brute force blocking is causing customers to miss legitimate calls: Around 63% of Americans feel like they may miss legitimate calls because they suspect they are spam and do not answer. 

Neighbor spoofing is on the rise despite regulation: Neighbor spoofing, i.e. the act of spam calling someone by using the same or similar area code, increased over the last year. 51% of respondents answered that they’ve seen an increase in these types of sneaky robocalls.

Spamming has created distrust in the phone call: 86% of Americans said that they try to only answer calls if they can identify the person or business they are calling from.

High income earners and young adults are more likely to take action after a scam call:
The most common action was to download a Spam Blocker/Caller ID app.

Additional Stats from the Report:

●        Spam texts have doubled in the last three years 

●        Americans received nearly 31 spam calls per user per month. On average, 21.5 of these were robocalls

●        Nearly 3 in 5 Americans (58%) reported receiving more spam calls and/or text messages now than they did a year ago

●        79% of Americans receive spam calls with an automated voice or a strong accent, indicating an overseas origin 

●        The average number of spam texts per month is 19.5, signaling major YoY increases since 2019

“The findings from this year are concerning and shed light on the fact that fraudsters and scammers continue to outsmart increased government regulation. Additionally, with many robocalls coming from overseas, the increase in regulation will need to work in parallel with technological advancements provided by caller ID and spam-blocking apps, such as Truecaller,” says Alan Mamedi, CEO and Co-Founder at Truecaller. 

The full report can be found here.

For more information, visit truecaller.com or download the app through Google Play® for Android® devices and through Apple's® App Store® for iOS devices.

For more information, please contact:
 

Andreas Frid, Head of IR & Communication

+46 705 290800
andreas.frid@truecaller.com
 

About Truecaller:
Truecaller (TRUE B) is the leading global platform for verifying contacts and blocking unwanted communication. We enable safe and relevant conversations between people and make it efficient for business to connect with consumers. Fraud and unwanted communication are endemic to digital economies, especially in emerging markets. We are on a mission to build trust in communication. Truecaller is an essential part of everyday communication for more than 300 million active users, with half a billion downloads since launch and around 38 billion unwanted calls identified and blocked in 2021. Headquartered in Stockholm, since 2009, we are a co-founder led, entrepreneurial company, with a highly experienced management team. Truecaller is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since 8 October 2021. For more information, please visit corporate.truecaller.com