(Redmond, WA, Thursday, July 22, 2021) — Today the Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit is releasing a new 2021 survey examining tech support scams and their impact on consumers. Each month, Microsoft receives about 6,500 complaints from people across the globe who report that they have been the victim of a tech support scam, in which scammers use the name of Microsoft or one of its products to lure victims into paying for unnecessary, or even harmful, “services.” To scope this problem globally, Microsoft commissioned a new 2021 survey covering 16 countries*, as a follow-up to similar surveys the company facilitated in 2018 and in 2016.

Results from the 2021 survey revealed that globally, fewer consumers have been exposed to scams as compared to the 2018 survey. However, those people who moved forward with the interactions with scammers were more likely to have lost money than was seen in previous surveys. Sophisticated scams are evolving from cold calls to fake online pop-up ads and fraudulent websites, which can affect everyone, even the most active online users like millennials and Gen Z.

The survey also found that:

• Three out of five consumers have encountered a tech support scam in the past 12 months.
• One out of six consumers were lured into continuing with the scam, often leading to victims losing hundreds of dollars to the fraudsters.
• Millennials (age 24-37) and Gen Zers (age 18-23) have the highest exposure to tech support scams. One out of 10 Millennials and one out of 10 Gen Zers that encountered a scam fell for it and lost money.
• 69% of those who continued with a scam reported suffering from moderate to severe stress due to the fraudulent interaction.

Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) is releasing these findings to help raise awareness and educate consumers about how to protect themselves from fraudsters. The DCU works to combat tech support scams by investigating tech support fraud networks and referring cases to law enforcement, strengthening Microsoft products and services to better protect consumers from various fraudulent tactics and educating the public about how to identify, avoid, and report scams. For more information on the results from the 2021 survey and Microsoft’s work to combat tech support fraud, visit: Tech support scams adapt and persist in 2021, per new Microsoft research – Microsoft On the Issues. Those who think they may have been the victim of a tech support scam can report their experience at www.microsoft.com/reportascam and also file reports with law enforcement authorities, such as their local consumer protection authority.

*Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the United States – countries in bold are new in 2021.