Common Scams Right Now (2026): An International Field Guide
TL;DR: Americans reported losing a record $15.9 billion to fraud in 2025. This is a map of what's actually circulating right now — imposter calls, toll-text smishing, fake renewal invoices, holiday shopping scams, and more — each with a link to the full breakdown.
Fraud losses hit an all-time high across the US, UK, Canada, and Australia in 2025, and the specific scripts keep evolving. This page is a working map of what's active right now.
Call and message scams
- Bank and government imposter calls — the single most commonly reported scam category, with over 1 million reports and $3.5 billion in losses in the US alone. See Bank and Government Imposter Scam Calls.
- Social Security impersonation calls — fake SSA agents threatening suspension of your benefits or Social Security number. See Social Security Impersonation Calls.
- The EZ Pass unpaid toll text scam — a mass smishing campaign impersonating toll agencies nationwide. See The EZ Pass Toll Text Scam.
- The Geek Squad renewal email scam — a fake, inflated subscription invoice designed to trigger a panicked callback. See The Geek Squad Renewal Email Scam.
Shopping and job scams
- Holiday and e-commerce shopping scams — fake stores and shipping notifications that spike every November–December. See Holiday and E-Commerce Shopping Scams.
- Fake job offer and LinkedIn recruiter scams — deceptive employment offers, now the FTC's 5th most reported scam category. See Fake Job Offer Scams.
- QR code scams ("quishing") — fraudulent codes on parking meters, menus, and flyers. See QR Code Scams Internationally.
The AI layer
AI voice cloning is now showing up across imposter and family-emergency scams alike — see AI Voice Cloning Scam Calls for what these actually sound like and how to verify.
If it's already happened to you
If money has already moved or you've already shared something you shouldn't have, go straight to I Just Got Scammed in the US — What Do I Do Right Now? or the fuller complete international recovery guide.
Reducing what scammers can already find
Most of these scripts lean on a detail that sounds specific to you — a name, an employer, an address. That's frequently pulled from data broker sites; see the data broker opt-out guide for the UK, Canada, and Australia, or the US version. A Scan My Shadow report checks what's tied to your own phone number and email.
Recent incidents worth knowing about
Real, dated cases from Australia, the USA, Canada, the UK, and New Zealand, each broken down in full:
- Scammers exploiting Australia's new social media age ban
- Investment scams have cost Australians almost $96M this year
- Fake FTC agents running a "refund and recovery" scam
- Santa Barbara case: scammers posed as a US Marshal over "compromised" data
- Fake class-action settlement texts scamming Canadians
- Winnipeg's Bitcoin ATM and the CRA impersonation scam pattern
- Fraudsters impersonating Action Fraud itself in the UK
- The "card cleaning" courier scam targeting elderly UK residents
- New Zealand tax refund scams have surged 44%
- Sextortion scams are rising in New Zealand
This week's alerts: September 12-19, 2026
Fresh scams and data breaches reported in the last seven days across the USA, Canada, the UK and Australia:
United States
- FINAL WARNING Facebook Text Scam: Do Not Reply
- Amazon Prime Refund Scam Texts: Real Payment or Fake?
- Fake Farm Equipment Sellers: FTC Warns Farmers of New Scam
- CEO Fraud Email Scam: Fake ServiceNow ACH Payment Requests
- Intimate Image Shared Online? The 48-Hour Takedown Rule
- CenterPoint Energy Data Breach: What Customers Should Do
- Florida DMV Driver Database Breach: What It Means for You
Canada
- Fake Bank Investigator Scam: Guelph Woman Loses $800,000
- Fake Rogers Agent Scam: Windsor Police Warn About Phone Orders
- Fake OPP Officer and Judge Roofing Scam Hits Kanata Seniors
- Telus Breach Email Says Ignore It? What Customers Should Do
United Kingdom
- TV Licence Direct Debit Email Scam: How to Spot the Fake
- iPhone 18 Pro Scam Sites: Fake Apple Shops to Avoid
- Revolut Data Breach: Fake Government Requests Exposed IDs
- City Relay Data Breach: London Property Key Codes Exposed
Australia
- Scam Online Casino Websites Targeting Australians in 2026
- Auto-IT Ransomware Hit Car Dealers: What Buyers Should Do
Global
- Fake ChatGPT Billing Email: The $23.80 Phishing Scam
- Passkey Phishing: Fake IT Calls Hijack Microsoft Accounts
- First AI-Agent Data Breach Reported in Spain: What It Means
Once the immediate danger has passed, see how much of your information is already public: See what's visible about you.
New scam guides (September 21, 2026)
Fresh guides on scams across the USA, UK, Canada and Australia:
- USPS Package Text Scam: How to Spot It and What to Do
- Zelle, Cash App and Venmo Scams: Can You Get Money Back?
- Medicare Card Scam Calls: What Medicare Will Never Ask
- HMRC, ATO and myGov Scam Texts: How to Spot and Report
- Rental Listing Scams: How to Spot a Fake Apartment Ad
- Student Loan Forgiveness Scams: Red Flags and Free Help
- Kids' Gaming Scams: Free Robux, V-Bucks and Diamond Traps
- Is My Phone Hacked or Tapped? Stalkerware Signs and Fixes
- What Is Doxxing? What to Do If Your Info Is Posted Online
- Call Forwarding Scam (*401#): How to Check and Cancel It
Sources
Related Reading
- Common Matrimonial Scams in India and How They Work
- Common Scams in India Right Now (2026)
- Grandparent Scams Internationally
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the most commonly reported scam right now?
Imposter scams — someone posing as a bank, government agency, or trusted business — are the single most commonly reported scam category in the US, with over 1 million reports and roughly $3.5 billion in losses in the most recent full year of data.
Which scam category causes the biggest financial losses?
Investment scams cause the largest dollar losses overall, at roughly $7.9 billion — nearly half of all money reported lost to fraud — even though they're reported less frequently than imposter scams.
Are these scams seasonal?
Some are — holiday and e-commerce shopping scams spike sharply every November and December, while others like toll-text smishing and imposter calls run year-round.
What should I do if I've already lost money to one of these?
Contact your bank or card issuer immediately, then report to the FBI's IC3 and the FTC, and use the complete international recovery guide to find the steps specific to your situation.
Is there a single habit that helps against most of these?
Treating any unsolicited urgent request for money, personal information, or a callback number as unverified until you independently confirm it through an official channel blocks the mechanism behind nearly all of them.
What are the most common types of scams?
Impersonation of banks, government agencies and delivery firms, investment and romance scams, fake shops and job offers, and phishing by email, text and phone call.
Where can I find the latest scam alerts?
We add new alerts to the blog regularly. For official warnings, check your national fraud-reporting body, such as the FTC ReportFraud site in the US.
Looking for one scam in depth? See our guides to WhatsApp scams, Telegram scams, Instagram scams, dating and romance scams, phishing, fake websites.
Staying safe: stay safe online tips, social engineering, password leak check, strong password ideas and identity theft protection. Latest incidents: recent data breaches.
Curious what's already out there about you? Scan My Shadow checks your phone number and email across 1,500+ sources and sends you a clear report — no guesswork, just facts. Start your scan.
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