Compare cybercrime losses in Texas

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Compare cybercrime losses in Texas

Cybercrime victims in Texas lost $1,021.5 million in 2023, ranking second in the nation, according to FBI data.

Thanks to rapidly evolving technology, near-universal Internet use, and increasingly sophisticated scams, cybercrime is on the rise—and billions of people in particular are being stolen from Americans. In 2023, the United States experienced hundreds of thousands more cybercrimes than the other 19 largest countries combined.

Drata analyzed the state of cybercrime in Texas as part of a larger national analysis using the FBI’s 2023 Internet Crime Report.

FBI data shows that cybercrime cost Americans $12.5 billion in 2023, a figure that has risen annually for at least five years. In 2023, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) received a record number of more than 880,000 complaints, with victims reporting losses averaging more than $14,000. Notably, cybercrime is significantly underreported, making the FBI data, which only includes reported crimes, woefully incomplete.

Texas residents reported 47,305 cybercrimes in 2023, which is about 155 cybercrime victims per million people. On average, these victims reported losses of $21,595.

Overall losses rose to $33 per Texas resident, ranking 18th in the country.

Cybercrime affects people of all ages in all parts of the country. Nearly one in three Americans have been victims of online financial fraud or cybercrime, according to a 2023 Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Wells Fargo. Earlier this year, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency published draft rules for reporting cyberattacks among critical infrastructure agencies, which mandate the reporting of large attacks and ransoms paid. In the future, these guidelines will allow for more comprehensive data collection, at least among large organizations. Despite this, current numbers clearly show that some Americans are more at risk of fraud than others.

Americans over 60 reported the highest number of complaints and losses in 2023. They have borne the brunt of an escalation in phantom hacking scams, where attackers pose as IT professionals, banking/investment officers and government officials to establish credibility and trust with victims. About half of those who filed related complaints were age 60 or older and suffered more than $770 million in losses.

However, increasingly sophisticated scams are increasing the risks for a younger, more tech-savvy population. Of the $2.2 billion increase in cybercrime losses in 2022-23, more than half was due to an increase in cryptocurrency fraud. Crypto scams make up the majority of digital investment scams, and the category affects age groups over 30 relatively evenly.

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Drata

National view: high losses in technological and political centers

In the US, the powerhouses of politics, technology and gambling suffered particularly heavy losses. In the nation’s capital, cybercrime victims lost more than $46 million to scams, nearly double the national per capita loss. Residents of California and Nevada also reported heavy losses.

As the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. is an obvious target for cybercriminals. Government facilities were among the largest critical infrastructure targets for ransomware attacks in 2023. There have been several high-profile data breaches in the District of Columbia, including leaks of voter records and the personal information of senior national security officials. Attacks have also been launched against political action committees, threatening campaign financiers, lobbyists and donors.

California’s high-tech culture makes it another obvious target for cybercriminals. Californians from Silicon Valley to Los Angeles have been among the first to be hit by growing crypto scams. This includes more complex scams where scammers build relationships with people through dating apps, social media, websites and other means, and then convince them to invest in cryptocurrency through fake websites and apps.

The California state government has already taken some action by restricting withdrawals from Bitcoin ATMs following a series of scams involving them. In May, the FBI’s San Francisco office issued an advisory warning about cybercrimes using artificial intelligence, such as automated and spear-phishing campaigns, and sophisticated voice and video impersonations of friends, family and co-workers.

As cybercrimes become more advanced, they also damage entire systems or disrupt businesses. In neighboring Nevada, Las Vegas, a hub of vibrant business and constant spending, also suffered major attacks last year. The city’s two largest casino and hotel operators were hit by attacks that forced one to shut down its casino, hotel and key systems, and the other to pay nearly $15 million to prevent its data from being leaked. The Nevada Gaming Control Board was also hacked in January of this year.

Although many people and institutions lost money to fraud last year, timely reporting and enforcement prevented further losses. The FBI has helped freeze victims’ funds in thousands of incidents and prevented approximately 71% of losses in these cases. Even in cases where victims’ funds have already been stolen, loss reporting helps the FBI investigate and link crime chains, identify and alert the public to new scams, and track cybercriminals.

This article features data delivery and writing by Paxtin Merten and is part of a series using data automation in the 50 states and Washington, DC.

This story originally appeared on Drata and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.

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