Utah Scam Report: What's Targeting UT and How to Fight Back
Utah residents filed 9,903 scam and cybercrime complaints with the FBI in 2025 and reported $195.4 million in losses — the 25th-highest total among the 50 states and DC. Here's what those numbers look like up close, which scams are actually hitting Utah, 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 Utah 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.
Utah ranks 28th in raw complaint volume and 25th in total losses. Adjusted for population, it ranks 18th in complaints and 17th in losses per 100,000 residents. That per-capita rank is significantly worse than the raw numbers suggest — Utah residents are being hit disproportionately hard for the state's size.
Scams Targeting Utah Seniors
Utah residents aged 60 and over filed 2,341 complaints and reported $65.9 million in losses in 2025 — roughly 34% 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 Utah gets a suspicious call, text, or pop-up, have them scan it first — before anyone moves money.
Cryptocurrency Fraud in Utah
1,833 Utah complaints referenced cryptocurrency in 2025, with $107.5 million in associated losses — about 55% 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 Utah
Affinity investment fraud
Utah is nationally known for affinity fraud — investment schemes spread through trusted community and church networks. The state even maintains a white-collar crime offender registry. Vet every opportunity independently, especially ones vouched for by someone you trust.
High per-capita losses in a young state
Despite having the nation's youngest population, Utahns lost $195.4 million in 2025 — $5.5 million per 100,000 residents, 17th nationally. Crypto-linked losses hit $107.5 million.
Express-lane and toll texts
Utah's express lanes are free-flow — there's no toll bill to pay by text. “Unpaid Utah toll” messages are fake.
How to Report a Scam in Utah
- 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 Utah Division of Consumer Protection. State consumer-protection offices mediate complaints, issue local warnings, and bring enforcement actions against scammers operating in Utah.
- 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 Utah residents lose to scams in 2025?
Utah residents reported $195.4 million in losses across 9,903 complaints filed with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) in 2025 — the 25th-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 Utah?
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 Utah Division of Consumer Protection. If money left your bank account, call your bank's fraud department immediately.
Are older Utah residents targeted more?
Utah residents aged 60 and over filed 2,341 complaints and reported $65.9 million in losses in 2025 — about 34% 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.