Identity Theft Statistics
Reported incidents and financial losses from identity theft, drawn from FTC IdentityTheft.gov reports and Javelin Strategy annual studies.
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
Identity theft occurs when a criminal uses another person's personal information — name, Social Security number, date of birth, bank or card details — without consent to commit fraud, open accounts, obtain loans, or file false tax returns. It is one of the most enduring and widespread forms of financial crime, and unlike many other fraud types, the harm can persist for years as victims work to restore damaged credit histories.
Identity theft is substantially under-reported. Many victims do not discover that their identity has been stolen until they receive a bill for an account they never opened, a tax refund rejection, or a credit-check denial. By that point, the criminal activity may have occurred months or even years earlier. The FTC and Javelin Strategy both note that only a fraction of identity-theft incidents result in a formal complaint.
Key figures
1,135,270 identity theft reports filed in 2024 — a 9.5% increase over the 1,036,845 logged in 2023
Identity theft reports received via FTC IdentityTheft.gov (US)
Source: FTC Consumer Sentinel Network 2024 Data Book (2024)
Identity theft represented 17% — the second largest category — of all 6.5 million Sentinel reports in 2024
Identity theft as a share of all FTC Sentinel reports (US)
Source: FTC Consumer Sentinel Network 2024 Data Book (2024)
$47 billion lost to identity fraud and scams in 2024 — $4 billion more than 2023; traditional identity fraud alone accounted for $27 billion affecting 18 million people
Total identity fraud losses including scams (US, Javelin Strategy)
Source: Javelin Strategy 2024 Identity Fraud Study (reported by AARP, April 2024) (2024)
$15.6 billion in account takeover losses in 2024, up from $12.7 billion in 2023
Account takeover fraud losses (US, Javelin Strategy)
Source: Javelin Strategy 2024 Identity Fraud Study (reported by AARP, April 2024) (2024)
Key takeaways
- The FTC received over 1.1 million identity theft reports in 2024 — a 9.5% increase over 2023 — making it the second most reported category in the Consumer Sentinel system.
- Javelin Strategy estimates total identity fraud losses (including scams) reached $47 billion in 2024, with traditional identity fraud alone affecting 18 million Americans.
- Account takeover fraud — where criminals gain access to existing financial accounts — reached $15.6 billion in 2024, a 23% increase over 2023.
- Victims now spend nearly 10 hours on average resolving identity theft issues, compared with 6 hours in 2022, reflecting growing complexity in restoring financial and credit standing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between identity theft and identity fraud?
Identity theft is the act of stealing someone's personal information. Identity fraud is the use of that stolen information to commit a crime — such as opening a credit card, filing a false tax return, or accessing a bank account. The two terms are often used interchangeably, but Javelin Strategy and the FTC treat them as distinct events that may or may not be linked in time.