Nearly three in four US scam victims report mental health harm, poll finds

SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkNearly three-quarters of people reported that scams adversely affected their mental health or wellbeing [File: Matt Cardy/Getty]By Al Jazeera staffPublished On 1 Jul 20261 Jul 2026A tenth of adults in the United States directly or indirectly experienced a scam last year, adversely affecting their financial and emotional wellbeing, according to a new Gallup poll.The report by Gallup released on Tuesday indicated that 6 percent of US adults were personally scammed in 2025, while 4 percent experienced a scam indirectly, with someone in their household affected.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3US sanctions Cambodian senator over purported scam network linkslist 2 of 3California county scam ad lawsuit adds to mounting Meta legal woeslist 3 of 3‘An apocalypse’: Why are experts sounding the alarm on AI risks?end of listScams are a widespread problem in the country, with Gallup noting that they can leave victims more cautious, less likely to shop online, and more hesitant to engage with unfamiliar businesses.“The data suggest the cost of scams extends beyond what can be measured in dollars, as nearly three in four victims say the experience negatively affected their mental health or wellbeing,” the report stated.The poll suggested that people from lower-income households were more likely than wealthier people to report being scammed.Adults with less than a bachelor’s degree were more likely to report being scammed than those with a bachelor’s degree or higher – 7 percent versus 4 percent, Gallup found.Black (8 percent) and Hispanic (9 percent) adults were also more likely than white adults (5 percent) to say they had been scammed. However, victimisation rates did not differ by age, the report stated.In more than half of the scams reported to Gallup, people lost $500 or less. However, the average loss per scam was $5,578, as some scams reached tens of thousands of dollars, the report said.In total, the financial toll of scams in 2025 was estimated at $68bn, amounting to an average of $186m stolen each day.One in five adults who were personally victimised or live in a household that was scammed in 2025 reported that it created a severe financial hardship for their household, with households earning less than $80,000 annually hit harder.Emotional damage from scams, however, was more widespread, the survey indicated.Among adults in households affected by scams, more than a quarter (28 percent) said the experience had a very negative impact on their mental health or wellbeing, while a further 45 percent describe the impact as moderately negative. Overall, nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of people reported that the scam adversely affected their mental health or wellbeing.The emotional toll was also pervasive among those who live with someone who was scammed, the survey suggested.The poll also indicated that the lifetime prevalence of being scammed is much higher than the 6 percent of people who were in 2025. Nearly a quarter (24 percent) of adults report having been scammed at some point in their lives, including 10 percent who said that they had fallen victim multiple times.“At a time when institutional trust in the US is already weak, the prevalence of scams represents not just a personal financial threat, but a broader erosion of confidence in the businesses and systems used in everyday life,” the report said.Gallup surveyed 5,173 US adults between January and February of this year.