Top 10 Consumer According to FTC

FTC Releases Top 10 Consumer Fraud Complaint Categories

Complaints about identity theft topped the list. Identity theft accountedg for 255,000 of more than 686,000 complaints filed with the agency in 2005.



Identity theft complaints represented 37 percent of the 686,683 complaints filed. Other top categories of fraud complaints for 2005 include:

* Internet Auctions - 12 percent
* Foreign Money Offers - 8 percent
* Shop-at-Home/Catalog Sales - 8 percent
* Prizes/Sweepstakes and Lotteries - 7 percent
* Internet Services and Computer Complaints - 5 percent
* Business Opportunities and Work-at-Home plans - 2 percent
* Advance-Fee Loans and Credit Protection - 2 percent
* Telephone Services - 2 percent
* Other - 17 percent

Other findings from the report include:

* Internet-related complaints accounted for 46 percent of all fraud complaints.
* The percent of Internet-related fraud complaints with “wire transfer” as the reported payment method more than tripled between 2003 and 2005.
* The major metropolitan areas with the highest per capita rates of consumer fraud reported were Washington, DC; Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater, FL; and Seattle, WA.
* Credit card fraud was the most common form of reported identity theft, followed by phone or utilities fraud, bank fraud, and employment fraud.
* The most frequently reported type of identity theft bank fraud was electronic funds transfers.
* The major metropolitan areas with the highest per capita rates of reported identity theft were Phoenix/Mesa/Scottsdale, AZ; Las Vegas/Paradise, NV; and Riverside/San Bernardino/Ontario, CA.


The FTC maintains a Web site at www.consumer.gov/idtheft that is a one-stop national resource where consumers can learn about the crime of identity theft.