Tennessee Scam Report: What's Targeting TN and How to Fight Back
Tennessee residents filed 16,261 scam and cybercrime complaints with the FBI in 2025 and reported $269.2 million in losses — the 19th-highest total among the 50 states and DC. Here's what those numbers look like up close, which scams are actually hitting Tennessee, 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 Tennessee 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.
Tennessee ranks 20th in raw complaint volume and 19th in total losses. Adjusted for population, it ranks 39th in complaints and 40th in losses per 100,000 residents. That per-capita rank is notably better than the raw totals suggest — Tennessee's big numbers are mostly a function of its big population.
Scams Targeting Tennessee Seniors
Tennessee residents aged 60 and over filed 3,525 complaints and reported $108.3 million in losses in 2025 — roughly 40% 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 Tennessee gets a suspicious call, text, or pop-up, have them scan it first — before anyone moves money.
Cryptocurrency Fraud in Tennessee
2,854 Tennessee complaints referenced cryptocurrency in 2025, with $142.0 million in associated losses — about 53% 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 Tennessee
Toll texts in a toll-free state
Tennessee has no toll roads, so every “unpaid Tennessee toll” text is automatically fake — a fact the state has publicized as the smishing wave hit.
Vacation rental and event booking fraud
Nashville's tourism boom powers fake short-term rental listings and bogus “direct booking” deals that collect deposits for properties the scammer doesn't own.
Storm and disaster repair fraud
Tornado recovery attracts storm-chaser contractors demanding cash up front. Tennesseans lost $269.2 million to online fraud in 2025, with $108.3 million reported by residents 60 and older.
How to Report a Scam in Tennessee
- 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 Tennessee Attorney General's Office. State consumer-protection offices mediate complaints, issue local warnings, and bring enforcement actions against scammers operating in Tennessee.
- 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 Tennessee residents lose to scams in 2025?
Tennessee residents reported $269.2 million in losses across 16,261 complaints filed with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) in 2025 — the 19th-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 Tennessee?
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 Tennessee Attorney General's Office. If money left your bank account, call your bank's fraud department immediately.
Are older Tennessee residents targeted more?
Tennessee residents aged 60 and over filed 3,525 complaints and reported $108.3 million in losses in 2025 — about 40% of the state's reported losses. Nationally, people 60+ lost $7.748 billion, more than any other age group.
Other States in the South
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.