Scammers stole $243,517,403 from Colorado victims in 2024, according to the latest report from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Colorado was 7th in the nation in terms of complaints filed per capita, with 14,848 reports made to IC3.

Reported losses in the state increased nearly $56 million over the 2023 dollar amount.

The top three schemes with the largest dollar amount losses in 2024 in Colorado were investment fraud ($90 million); business email compromise ($48 million); and personal data breach ($23 million).

The top three schemes in terms of numbers of reports from Colorado were extortion (2,320); phishing/spoofing (1,385); and personal data breach (1,187).

The age group that reported the most complaints was people age 60 and older: 3,125 individuals reported losing $74,462,501.

“This report serves as a sobering reminder that Coloradans — especially senior citizens — continue to be prime targets for scammers who will jump at every opportunity to defraud potential victims,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek. “Public vigilance is critical as cyber-enabled threats become more sophisticated and pervasive, impacting both our workplaces and our personal lives.”

In 2024, the IC3 received 859,532 complaints nationwide of suspected Internet crime with reported losses of $16.6 billion. That is a 33 percent increase in losses from 2023.

These are only the reports made to IC3; not every victim files a complaint—or even realizes he or she is a victim—so the actual numbers are probably higher in terms of victims and losses.

Nationwide, the top three scams most frequently reported by victims were phishing/spoofing, extortion, and personal data breaches. Victims of investment fraud, specifically those involving cryptocurrency, reported the most losses — totaling more than $6.5 billion.

Cryptocurrency investment fraud increased 29 percent over 2023. Ransomware complaints were up 9 percent across the country

As a group, people 60 and older suffered the most losses in 2024 at nearly $5 billion and submitted the greatest number of complaints.

If you feel you have been a victim of a cyber-enabled crime, file a complaint at IC3.gov.

Read the full IC3 report here: https://www.ic3.gov/AnnualReport/Reports/2024_IC3Report.pdf

Breakdowns by state are here: https://www.ic3.gov/AnnualReport/Reports/2024State/