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Scam Encounters Every Four Days: Mexico's Financial Toll

POLITICS 03.11.2025

Scam Encounters Every Four Days: Mexico's Financial Toll

This study of 1,000 Mexican adults reveals that over three-quarters have encountered a scam, with an average of one scam encounter happening every four days, equating to 86 scam encounters on average per person per year in Mexico.

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THE HAGUE, NL / ACCESS Newswire / November 3, 2025 / Additionally, nearly 3/5 of Mexican adults claim to have experienced a scam in the last year, with each scam victim being scammed on average 1.8 times.

With widespread financial losses
Shopping scams (55%), investment scams (48%) and unexpected money scams (47%) are the most common types of scams in Mexico, with some having money stolen via email while others received kidnapping threats. Additionally, over 1/3 of Mexican adults claim to have lost money to scams in the last year. Wire or bank transfers (55%) and debitcard payments (21%) are the most common methods used by scammers to receive payment. Of those who have experienced being scammed, 2/3 have reported the scam to the payment service, and half of those were not able to recover any money lost.

And limited confidence in reporting
Scam encounters are frequent in Mexico, with 12% of Mexican adults encountering a scam multiple times a week. Over the past 12 months, over half of those who have encountered a scam have reported it at least once. However, those who reported the scam encounter said that either no action was taken (37%) or they are not sure what the outcome was (15%). Half of those who have never reported a scam encounter said they did not report it because they were unsure who to report the scam to, while over 1/3 did not think it would make a difference/no action would be taken.

Leading to increased vigilance
97% of Mexican adults claim to take at least one step to check if an offer is legitimate or a scam. The most common step taken is searching for reviews on other websites (36%), reflecting high effectiveness against scams.

And rising calls for accountability
1/3 of Mexican adults believe full repayment to the victim should be the top penalty for scammers, however, 19% believe in more severe punishment such as jail time of 6 to 10 or more years. Scams in Mexico continue to take a heavy toll, causing financial losses, emotional strain and prompting calls for greater protections and stricter consequences.

"These findings show both the scale of the challenge and the resilience of the Mexican people. Despite facing scams every few days, most adults are taking steps to verify information and protect themselves. Now it is time for organizations, regulators, and companies to match that vigilance with concrete measures to make Mexico a safer place online," said Sissi de la Peña, Director of GASA Chapter Mexico.

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