GAO Calls for Unified Federal Strategy to Combat Rising Financial Scam Threat

A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlights significant gaps in the federal response to consumer-targeted scams, urging key agencies to adopt a coordinated national strategy, harmonize data collection, and assess the impact of consumer education. The review, released April 8, 2025, emphasizes the growing financial threat scams pose to Americans and underscores the lack of consistent federal oversight and reporting standards.

GAO found that while 13 federal agencies actively work to counter scams, none operate under a unified, government-wide strategy. Efforts vary in focus and approach, with existing frameworks failing to address scams comprehensively or apply across agency lines. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is currently developing a strategy for cyber-enabled fraud, but broader leadership is needed to create a national approach that includes defining scams, aggregating data, and coordinating federal and private sector actions.

Currently, no federal agency is able to estimate the total number of scam complaints or associated financial losses due to data limitations and inconsistent reporting methods. For example, the FBI estimated receiving around 589,400 scam-related complaints in 2023, involving $10.55 billion in losses. The Department of the Treasury cited $200 billion in impersonation-related suspicious activity based on 2021 banking data. GAO noted the absence of a government-wide estimate of scam losses as a major hindrance to informed policymaking.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), FBI, and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) all disseminate educational materials about scam prevention, yet none evaluate how well these efforts work in helping consumers identify and avoid scams. GAO recommended establishing performance metrics to gauge effectiveness, allowing agencies to refine their outreach strategies and better protect the public. The agency issued 16 recommendations across the FBI, CFPB, and FTC, including developing a shared definition of scams, improving complaint data systems, and collaborating to produce national estimates of losses and incidents.

The FBI disagreed with several recommendations concerning scam definitions and effectiveness evaluations, while the FTC offered no comment. GAO maintains that all recommendations are necessary to support a coordinated and data-driven response to a rapidly evolving threat landscape.

Article by multiple RFHC contributors, based upon information from the U.S. Government Accountability Office press release GAO-25-107088

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