Protecting Your Data Online When Banking And Investing
Published
It has never been a more vulnerable time to use the internet. While it plays an essential role in our daily lives, cyber threats are more prevalent than ever. With our increasingly interconnected lives, cybercriminals now have more avenues to access sensitive data and financial accounts. This makes it critical to be vigilant with every app, email, and website we use.
Digital transactions are rapidly replacing cash. In fact, cashless payment volume is expected to increase by 80% by 2025 to nearly 1.9 trillion transactions, and almost triple by 2030. In the United States alone, analysts predict that contactless payments will account for nearly 40% of all card transactions by 2026. However, this opens up new opportunities for cybercrime.
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), cybercrime is hitting new highs. Their 2024 Internet Crime Report detailed 859,532 complaints of suspected internet crime, with reported losses exceeding $16 billion - a 33% increase from the previous year. The most common crimes reported were phishing and spoofing, extortion, and personal data breaches.
Investment fraud, particularly those involving cryptocurrency, resulted in the highest financial losses, totaling over $6.5 billion. Alarmingly, individuals over the age of 60 suffered the most, with nearly $5 billion in losses and the greatest number of complaints.
Now in its 25th year, the IC3 has received more than 9 million complaints since its inception, averaging over 2,000 reports per day in the last five years. With scams ranging from phishing emails to ransomware attacks, the rise in digital crimes highlights the growing need for stronger online protection, especially when it comes to banking and investing.
Which Cyber Crimes Have the Most Impact on U.S. Citizens?
In 2024, the FBI recorded $16.6 billion cybercrime-related losses. Fraud led the way, while ransomware remained the top threat to critical infrastructure, with incidents rising by 9% from 2023. Older adults were disproportionately affected, submitting the most complaints and experiencing the highest financial losses.
The shift to remote work and online commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic created a perfect opportunity for cybercriminals. These digital habits have persisted post-pandemic, likely contributing to the significant spike in losses over the past few years. To better understand which cybercrimes are the most damaging, Whitaker Brothers analyzed IC3’s 2024 complaint data by both total financial losses and average loss per individual.
2024 Cyber Crime Types Ranked by Total Losses
Rank
Crime Type
2024 Count
2024 Loss
1
Phishing/Spoofing
193,407
$70,013,036
2
Extortion
86,415
$143,185,736
3
Personal Data Breach
64,882
$1,453,296,303
4
Non-Payment/Non-Delivery
49,572
$785,436,888
5
Investment
47,919
$6,570,639,864
6
Tech Support
36,002
$1,464,755,976
7
Business Email Compromise
21,442
$2,770,151,146
8
Identity Theft
21,403
$174,354,745
9
Employment
20,044
$264,223,271
10
Confidence Fraud/Romance
17,910
$672,009,052
2024 Cyber Crime Types Ranked by Loss Per Person
Rank
Crime Type
2024 Count
Loss Per Person
1
Investment
47,919
$137,119.72
2
Business Email Compromise
21,442
$129,192.76
3
Data Breach
3,204
$113,875.10
4
Tech Support
36,002
$40,685.41
5
Confidence Fraud/Romance
17,910
$37,521.44
6
Lottery/Sweepstakes/Inheritance
3,690
$27,699.80
7
SIM Swap
982
$26,460.23
8
Government Impersonation
17,367
$23,356.02
9
Other
12,318
$22,753.56
10
Personal Data Breach
64,882
$22,399.07
In 2024, phishing and spoofing topped the list of reported cybercrimes in the U.S., according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Report. Nearly 200,000 complaints were filed, with reported losses surpassing $70 million.
These scams typically rely on manipulation and deception to trick people into handing over sensitive information or clicking dangerous links. Common tactics include:
Posing as trusted companies or authorities, like banks or delivery services
Creating a sense of urgency, such as warning that your account will be suspended
Sending fake invoices or messages that look convincingly real
Exploiting fear or emotion to cloud judgment
However, while phishing is the most reported crime, investment fraud caused the most financial damage last year. With nearly $6.6 billion stolen from fewer than 50,000 victims, the average person lost over $137,000.
What’s even more concerning is how emerging technologies are fueling the problem. Criminals are now using AI tools, like advanced chatbots, convincing text generators, and even deepfakes, to appear more legitimate and scale their operations.
Which States Have Been Impacted the Most by Cyber Crimes?
2024 Cyber Crime Types by State, Ranked by Total Losses
Rank
State/Territory
Loss
1
California
$2,539,041,635
2
Texas
$1,351,598,183
3
Florida
$1,071,909,632
4
New York
$903,975,003
5
Illinois
$479,054,271
6
New Jersey
$434,856,424
7
Georgia
$420,454,472
8
Pennsylvania
$400,082,312
9
Arizona
$392,441,717
10
Washington
$368,203,209
11
Massachusetts
$338,872,378
12
North Carolina
$324,287,947
13
Virginia
$317,406,595
14
District of Columbia
$291,531,458
15
Ohio
$278,038,028
2024 Cyber Crime Types by State, Ranked by Loss Per Person
Rank
State/Territory
Complaints
Loss Per Person
1
Wyoming
1,377
$31,592.41
2
New Jersey
15,701
$27,696.10
3
California
96,265
$26,375.54
4
Connecticut
5,695
$25,264.97
5
Nevada
10,716
$25,081.12
6
New York
36,468
$24,788.17
7
North Dakota
885
$24,668.87
8
Massachusetts
14,254
$23,773.84
9
New Hampshire
2,340
$22,569.00
10
Minnesota
9,264
$21,950.83
11
Texas
62,347
$21,678.64
12
Mississippi
3,068
$21,386.55
13
Georgia
19,797
$21,238.29
14
Hawaii
2,603
$21,198.96
15
Florida
52,191
$20,538.21
California, Texas, and Florida report the highest total financial losses to cybercrime, with California at $2.54 billion, Texas at $1.35 billion, and Florida at $1.07 billion. This trend aligns with their large populations: California (39.4 million), Texas (31.3 million), and Florida (23.4 million).
However, when looking at the average financial loss per person, a different picture emerges. States like Wyoming, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Nevada rank among the top five. This shows that smaller or less populous states can still experience significant per capita impacts from cybercrime.
Which States Have Been Impacted the Most by Cyber Crimes?
2024 Cyber Crime Types by State, Ranked by Total Losses
Rank
State
Count
Loss
Loss Per Person
1
Texas
9,473
$489,790,386
$51,703.83
2
Georgia
3,622
$174,744,201
$48,245.22
3
Mississippi
604
$28,870,444
$47,798.75
4
California
18,091
$832,710,048
$46,028.97
5
New Jersey
2,918
$133,397,512
$45,715.39
6
Iowa
803
$34,991,114
$43,575.48
7
New York
6,225
$257,658,301
$41,390.89
8
Nebraska
551
$21,414,248
$38,864.33
9
Nevada
2,299
$81,400,930
$35,407.10
10
South Dakota
259
$8,975,829
$34,655.71
11
North Dakota
174
$5,781,845
$33,228.99
12
Florida
11,902
$388,436,198
$32,636.21
13
Wyoming
267
$8,648,675
$32,392.04
14
Massachusetts
3,224
$99,804,762
$30,956.81
15
Michigan
3,148
$92,378,793
$29,345.23
In 2025, adults aged 60 and over reported 147,127 cybercrime complaints, resulting in $4.8 billion in financial losses - a sharp rise of 46% in complaints and 43% in losses compared to 2023.
By comparison:
Under 20s reported 17,993 complaints, with $22.5 million in losses
20–29s: 71,399 complaints, $540.1 million in losses
30–39s: 108,899 complaints, $1.4 billion in losses
40–49s: 112,755 complaints, $2.2 billion in losses
50–59s: 84,540 complaints, $2.5 billion in losses
Since 2021, around 75% of adults aged 50–80 say they’ve encountered a scam attempt, and nearly one in three has experienced actual fraud, according to the National Poll on Healthy Ageing. Notably, older adults in poorer mental or physical health are more likely to fall victim.
There is a clear desire for our oldest and most vulnerable U.S. citizens to be educated on cyber crimes: 83% of older adults want more information on how to protect themselves and their data from scams. The vast majority believe both companies and policymakers should take stronger action to safeguard the public.
Whitaker Brothers Predicts Which States Are Impacted the Most by Cyber Crimes in 2025
2025 Cyber Crime Types by State, Ranked by Total Losses
Rank
State
Total Loss
1
Wyoming
$1,969,534,024
2
New Jersey
$1,726,630,266
3
California
$1,644,303,915
4
Connecticut
$1,575,068,760
5
Nevada
$1,563,607,183
6
New York
$1,545,344,094
7
North Dakota
$1,537,906,694
8
Massachusetts
$1,482,108,733
9
New Hampshire
$1,406,996,598
10
Minnesota
$1,368,458,644
11
Texas
$1,351,489,775
12
Mississippi
$1,333,280,300
13
Georgia
$1,324,037,475
14
Hawaii
$1,321,585,564
15
Florida
$1,280,393,088
To forecast how cybercrime will hit each state in 2025, Whitaker Brothers’ analysts combined recent trend data with state‑level financial statistics. Here’s how the projections came together:
First, the team looked at the year‑over‑year change in cybercrime complaints between 2023 and 2024. That percentage shift was then applied to the 2024 complaint totals across various types of cybercrime, yielding an estimated number of incidents for 2025.
Next, the average financial loss per person in each state (using 2024 data) was factored in. Multiplying this by the estimated number of incidents gave a forecast of total losses for the year ahead.
The results featured a mix of expected hotspots and a few surprising up‑and‑comers. As anticipated, Texas, New York, and California continue to dominate the top 15 states most impacted by cybercrime, a trend that has held for several years.
But in a notable shift, Wyoming emerges as the state projected to suffer the highest total losses in 2025, with New Jersey close behind. This shift reflects Wyoming’s unique vulnerability to internet scams and the increasing misuse of its shell companies for fraudulent activity.
How to Protect Your Data and Avoid Online Scams
Phishing
Phishing or smishing (text phishing) is one of the most common threats users face online. Typically, criminals will pretend to be representatives from the apps you use to try and convince you to send them your login data or send you payments to help you with an issue. Always check the sender's address of any email and, if you’re unsure, go to the site or app directly and check your account there before you communicate further with anyone from the platform.
Learn Your Provider’s Protocols
Whatever finance apps you use, they will have policies in place to help you protect your money. You should read about how they will contact you in the event of an emergency, and what kind of information they will and won’t request, so you can more easily spot when someone isn’t telling the truth.
Antivirus Protection for Your Phone
You could be at risk due to a vulnerability or virus on your phone that you don’t know about. To avoid the chance of anyone gaining access to your phone or apps, download a separate antivirus protection app for an extra layer of security.
Read Up on Common Scams
The apps you bank with want you to stay protected, and many will have dedicated support resources to help you spot and prevent scams. For example, Cash App has a list of common scams people take advantage of that could help you spot when something’s too good to be true before you hand over any money.
Methodology
Data was collected from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crime Report 2025. To find the average financial loss per person for internet crimes, we divided the total financial loss by the number of complaints made by each state or crime type.
