Military-connected consumers reported more fraud cases to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2024 than the previous year, as well as a significant hike in fraud losses – a total of $584 million, up from $477 million in 2023.

Retirees and veterans reported $419 million in losses in 2024, according to the FTC’s 2024 data book, released last month. That’s up from $350 million in 2023. The other categories of “military consumers” as identified by the FTC also saw increases:

• Active duty: $71 million in losses, up from $52 million in 2023
• Guard and Reserve members: $40 million in losses, up from $39 million
• Spouses and/or dependents of active duty servicemembers: $54 million in losses, up from $36 million.

While veterans and retirees lost the most overall, active duty members saw the larges loss per report, with an average of $920 lost in about 7,300 cases.

“We know that this is sort of the tip of the iceberg,” Terri Miller, a consumer education specialist with the FTC’s Division of Consumer and Business Education, said during a recent MOAA webinar on preventing fraud and identity theft. “Everyone who is affected by a scam doesn’t always report it. So this is just what we know … let’s assume that this number is higher.”