This Year’s Holiday Scam Warning: A New Report Says Some States Are Much More Vulnerable — and That’s a Problem

Holiday scams spike — and some states feel it harder

A new report released this week says that scam activity climbs during the holiday season, and it finds certain states are much more exposed than others. The study doesn’t just look at raw complaint numbers. It combines several measures to point to places where people are likeliest to be targeted, to lose money, or to face lasting identity harm.

The practical effect is simple: at certain times of year and in certain places, scammers get better odds. That matters because scams during the holidays often target emotions — generosity, time pressure and travel plans — and they can leave victims with more than annoyed feelings. The report’s authors say the geographic differences are big enough that they should shape how charities, banks and state regulators allocate outreach and enforcement resources this season.

How the report measured vulnerability: what was counted and why it matters

The study combines several broad data streams to build a single vulnerability score for each state plus the District of Columbia. Those inputs include consumer reports to government hotlines, complaint and incident rates adjusted for population, known patterns of identity-targeting fraud, and measures of local cyber-readiness such as reported rates of two-factor authentication use and the presence of state-level anti-fraud programs.

Instead of ranking states solely by the number of complaints, the report weights per-capita exposure and local susceptibility. That means a small state with a high rate of reports per resident can score worse than a big state with more total complaints. The authors also factor in demographics that studies have linked to higher losses from scams — for example, regions with larger concentrations of older adults or of first-time online shoppers — and they look at seasonal drivers like tourist flows and holiday shopping surge.

The methodology is not a precise measure of absolute risk; it’s an indexed view designed to highlight where resources could have the greatest impact. The report’s creators note that reporting rates vary across states — some places encourage formal complaints more than others — and they try to correct for that by using multiple independent data points.

What the rankings actually show: regional patterns and surprising findings

The headline finding is more pattern than a single list: vulnerability clusters by region and by social profile. States that attract seasonal visitors or large numbers of retirees tend to rise toward the top of the list. So do smaller states and jurisdictions where per-person complaint rates spike during the holidays.

That pattern matters because it helps explain why some places show a steady stream of fraud reports while others see short, intense bursts. Tourist hubs and travel corridors, for instance, face a mix of theft, travel-impersonation scams and payment fraud aimed at travelers. Retirement communities often see high rates of impersonation calls and investment-scam solicitations tied to holiday generosity or end-of-year appeals.

The report also highlights a few surprises. Some states with strong overall digital infrastructure still scored higher than expected, largely because they have pockets of vulnerable populations and busy urban corridors where fraudsters concentrate their efforts. Conversely, a few traditionally high-complaint states fell lower in the ranking once the math accounted for population size and local fraud-reporting habits.

Another notable point: the District of Columbia ranks above many states on a per-capita basis. Its small population and high flow of visitors and seasonal spending activity make it more exposed in relative terms, even if total dollar losses there are smaller than in large states.

The scams to watch this season — patterns, not a checklist

The report breaks down common holiday schemes into familiar categories. Phishing and fake charity appeals spike because people expect donation requests during the season. Delivery and shopping scams increase as online orders pile up; criminals spoof retailer messages and offer fake tracking links. Travel-related fraud grows around holiday travel, with fake rental listings and bogus airline-change scams reported more often.

Payment fraud and person-to-person scams also rise when people rush to send gifts or move money quickly for last-minute purchases. The seasonal trend is clear: criminals chase the same cues that make the holidays joyful — urgency, generosity and travel — and they bend normal behavior into opportunity.

How organizations are reacting and what it could mean for policy

Industry groups, consumer advocates and state officials have already begun to respond to the report’s findings. Banks and payment platforms say they’ll increase monitoring in higher-ranked regions during peak weeks, while several state consumer offices are planning targeted outreach campaigns aimed at older residents and frequent travelers.

Regulators see the rankings as a prompt to focus enforcement where the most harm is happening. Consumer groups argue the study makes a case for better public education and for platforms to adopt stronger default protections during the holiday surge. The report frames the holiday season as not just a time for policing scams, but for smarter, geographically focused prevention efforts going forward.

Sources

• prnewswire.com