California Scam Report: What's Targeting CA and How to Fight Back
California residents filed 116,414 scam and cybercrime complaints with the FBI in 2025 and reported $3.67 billion in losses — the 1st-highest total among the 50 states and DC. Here's what those numbers look like up close, which scams are actually hitting California, and exactly where to report one.
Reviewed by the Cautellus team · Last updated July 2026
Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) 2025 Annual Report. These are reported figures — the FBI estimates most victims never file, so real losses run far higher.
How California Compares
Nationally, Americans filed 1,008,597 complaints and reported $20.877 billion in losses in 2025 — up 26% from the year before, with an average loss of $20,699 per complaint.
California ranks 1st in raw complaint volume and 1st in total losses. Adjusted for population, it ranks 13th in complaints and 2nd in losses per 100,000 residents.
Scams Targeting California Seniors
California residents aged 60 and over filed 22,157 complaints and reported $1.40 billion in losses in 2025 — roughly 38% of everything lost in the state. Nationally, the 60+ age group lost $7.748 billion, more than any other age bracket, led by investment fraud, tech-support scams, and romance scams.
If a parent or grandparent in California gets a suspicious call, text, or pop-up, have them scan it first — before anyone moves money.
Cryptocurrency Fraud in California
20,878 California complaints referenced cryptocurrency in 2025, with $2.10 billion in associated losses — about 57% of the state's reported total. Most of it is investment fraud: “pig butchering” schemes that start with a friendly message on social media, a dating app, or a wrong-number text, and end at a fake trading platform that won't let you withdraw. Crypto ATM payment demands — for “bail,” “back taxes,” or “securing your account” — are the other major pattern. No legitimate business or government agency takes payment through a crypto ATM.
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Scan Now — It's FreeScam Patterns Hitting California
FasTrak and DMV text blasts
California is ground zero for the two biggest smishing waves in the country: fake FasTrak “unpaid toll” texts and fake DMV “registration issue” texts. Neither agency initiates payment demands by text.
Crypto investment fraud at unmatched scale
Californians reported $2.1 billion in cryptocurrency-linked losses in 2025 — the most in the nation by a wide margin. Pig-butchering operations targeting Californians typically start on LinkedIn, WhatsApp, or dating apps.
Wildfire relief and insurance fraud
After every major fire, fake FEMA registrations, bogus insurance adjusters, and fraudulent rebuild contractors follow. Verify adjusters through your insurer and contractors through the CSLB.
Fake tech recruiting
California's job market draws fake recruiter scams impersonating real tech companies — complete with fake interviews and “equipment check” payments before the ghosting.
How to Report a Scam in California
- 1If money moved, call your bank first. Ask for the fraud department and request a recall or reversal. Minutes matter more than anything else on this list.
- 2File with the FBI at ic3.gov. Fast reports give the FBI's Recovery Asset Team a chance to freeze wire transfers — and your complaint becomes part of the same dataset this page is built on.
- 3Report to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. FTC reports feed the Consumer Sentinel network used by law enforcement nationwide.
- 4File with the California Attorney General's Office. State consumer-protection offices mediate complaints, issue local warnings, and bring enforcement actions against scammers operating in California.
- 5Warn the next person. Share what happened on Cautellus so the phone number, website, or username gets flagged for everyone else who searches it.
FAQs
How much money did California residents lose to scams in 2025?
California residents reported $3.67 billion in losses across 116,414 complaints filed with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) in 2025 — the 1st-highest total among the 50 states and DC. Actual losses are higher, since most scams are never reported.
How do I report a scam in California?
File with the FBI at ic3.gov (especially if you lost money — fast reporting helps the FBI's Recovery Asset Team attempt to freeze transfers), report to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov, and file a complaint with the California Attorney General's Office. If money left your bank account, call your bank's fraud department immediately.
Are older California residents targeted more?
California residents aged 60 and over filed 22,157 complaints and reported $1.40 billion in losses in 2025 — about 38% of the state's reported losses. Nationally, people 60+ lost $7.748 billion, more than any other age group.
Other States in the West
Before You Pay, Click, or Reply
Every scam pattern on this page shares one weakness: it falls apart under a second opinion. If a text, email, link, or phone number feels off, run it through the Cautellus scanner before you act — it checks against 10,000+ confirmed scam entities aggregated from Reddit, FBI IC3, FTC, and global phishing databases, refreshed every 6 hours.
Think you've received a scam?
Paste a suspicious message, email, or URL into our free AI scanner for instant analysis.
Scan Now — It's FreeSources: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) 2025 Annual Report — state complaint, loss, per-capita, 60+, and cryptocurrency tables.