2025 Tech Scams to Watch: The Latest Threats and How to Beat Them

Editor note: This report is structured for immediate publication, but it requires insertion of verified, last-6-month statistics and sources before going live. Insert the latest figures where indicated. In recent months, law enforcement and cybersecurity firms have warned of sharp increases in tech scams 2025 driven by AI voice/video deepfakes, evolving phishing attacks, and record-high business email compromise losses. [Insert verified stat: Total reported cyber fraud losses in the last 6 months, with source and date].

AI Deepfake Scams

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– A finance employee was duped by a deepfake group video call into wiring multimillion-dollar funds in a high-profile case. [Insert verified case detail, date, amount, source link]
– Law enforcement reports a rise in celebrity/authority voice clones used in urgent payment and crypto schemes. [Insert stat: number of deepfake-related complaints, last 6 months, source]
– Average loss per deepfake-enabled scam has climbed. [Insert verified average loss figure and source]

How This Scam Works

• Recon: Scammers scrape social media, earnings calls, and video/audio interviews to train models on a target voice and likeness.
• Setup: Attackers schedule a “quick video call” or send a voicemail that sounds like a known executive, relative, or celebrity.
• Pressure: They create urgency (“wire this now,” “private deal,” “emergency bail”).
• Payment: They steer victims to crypto, gift cards, or a new vendor bank account controlled by mules.

Warning Signs

• Unscheduled video calls where the speaker avoids natural head movements or has lip-sync latency.
• Audio that sounds “too clean” or monotone with odd cadence, especially under bad network conditions.
• Requests to bypass normal approval/payment workflows.

Protection Strategies

• Use a pre-shared verification phrase for high-risk calls (wire transfers, executive approvals).
• Mandate out-of-band verification via a known phone number or secondary executive before payment changes.
• Adopt liveness checks: ask the caller to perform random actions (turn, blink pattern, hold up a specific object).
• Educate staff and families on how to spot deepfake video calls and voice clones with short internal videos and examples.

Business Email Compromise (BEC)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– BEC remains among the costliest online fraud trends for enterprises. [Insert verified stat: total BEC losses in last 6 months, source]
– Vendor email compromise led to multi-million dollar invoice fraud at several mid-market firms. [Insert case: company/industry, amount, source]
– Average BEC loss per incident increased year over year. [Insert stat: avg/median BEC loss last 6 months, source]

How This Scam Works

• Credential theft: Phishing or password reuse grants attackers mailbox access.
• Silent monitoring: Attackers study invoices, tone, and cycles to craft believable threads.
• Payment diversion: They alter vendor banking details or send a “new account” notice just before payment.
• Money movement: Funds route through domestic/overseas mules and are rapidly laundered.

Warning Signs

• Subtle domain changes ([email protected] instead of [email protected]).
• Requests to rush payment changes or skip a call-back due to “audit/confidentiality.”
• Messages sent outside normal business hours or from unusual geolocations.

Protection Strategies

• Require call-back verification for any change to vendor banking using a known phone number on file.
• Implement DMARC with enforcement (p=reject), SPF, and DKIM; monitor for lookalike domains.
• Use conditional access, phishing-resistant MFA (FIDO2/passkeys), and disable legacy email protocols.
• Create a two-person signoff for wires above a threshold; log and audit exceptions.
• Document and rehearse a playbook to prevent business email compromise in 2025 across finance, IT, and legal.

Tech Support Fraud

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– Authorities report sustained losses from fake Microsoft/Apple/ISP pop-ups and call centers. [Insert verified stat: total losses and victim counts in last 6 months, source]
– Elderly victims remain disproportionately targeted. [Insert stat: age-65+ victim share and average loss, source]

How This Scam Works

• Malicious ad or pop-up claims your device is infected and shows a spoofed support number.
• Scammer convinces the victim to install remote-access tools (AnyDesk, TeamViewer, Quick Assist).
• They “find” fake problems, urge payment or request online banking access to “issue a refund.”
• They initiate transfers or gift card purchases and may remain hidden for repeat theft.

Warning Signs

• Unsolicited pop-ups with loud alarms or countdown timers.
• Pressure to install remote software or disable antivirus.
• Requests for gift cards, crypto, or wire payments for tech support.

Protection Strategies

• Never call phone numbers from pop-ups; close the browser and restart.
• Use built-in OS support channels only; reach vendors via official websites you type, not ads.
• Block known remote admin tools for non-IT users; use application allowlists.
• Set bank withdrawal limits and alerts on elderly family accounts.

Cryptocurrency Schemes

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– “Pig butchering” and fake investment platforms continue to drive high-dollar losses. [Insert stat: crypto investment scam losses last 6 months, source]
– Scam-as-a-service toolkits have lowered the barrier for crypto-draining and wallet approval abuse. [Insert stat: number of wallets drained or average loss, source]
– Ransomware/social-media hijacks increasingly demand crypto. [Insert stat: trend figure, last 6 months, source]

How This Scam Works

• Social engineering: Scammers build rapport via messaging apps/dating platforms.
• Fake platform: Victims are led to lookalike exchanges with real-time fake profit dashboards.
• Escalation: “Tax”/“unlock” fees are demanded when withdrawal is attempted.
• Wallet-draining: Malicious approvals grant unlimited token spending permissions.

Warning Signs

• Guaranteed returns or “insider” signals; screenshots of impossible profits.
• Pressure to move to encrypted messaging and avoid calls/video.
• Requests for new wallet approvals or seed phrase “verification.”

Protection Strategies

• Use a hardware wallet for significant holdings; verify transactions on-device.
• Revoke suspicious token approvals regularly via trusted tools.
• Stick to exchanges registered/licensed in your jurisdiction; verify URLs via bookmarks.
• Educate family on “pig butchering” scripts and high-pressure tactics.

Romance and Social Engineering Scams

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– Dating app and messaging-app frauds remain steady, with large individual losses. [Insert stat: total romance scam losses last 6 months, source]
– Cross-over fraud: Romance to investment or crypto scams is increasingly common. [Insert stat: % of romance scams tied to investment pitches, source]

How This Scam Works

• Grooming: Weeks of daily messages build emotional trust.
• Isolation: Scammer discourages the victim from telling friends/family.
• Monetization: Emergency requests, investment pitches, or coerced mule activity.

Warning Signs

• Refusal to meet on video or repeated “camera is broken” excuses.
• Stories of sudden financial hardship or unique “investment opportunities.”
• Moving conversations off-platform immediately.

Protection Strategies

• Video-verify early; reverse-image search profile pictures.
• Never send money or crypto to someone you haven’t met in person.
• Tell a trusted friend about the relationship; isolate less, verify more.
• Use platform reporting tools to flag suspicious profiles.

Phishing Evolution (Email, Smishing, Vishing)

Recent Cases and Financial Impact

– AI-generated phishing attacks now mimic internal tone and formatting with fewer typos. [Insert stat: phishing volume or click-rate change last 6 months, source]
– SMS phishing (smishing) surged around delivery, tax, and payroll themes. [Insert stat: smishing growth rate, source]
– Voice phishing (vishing) increasingly pairs with MFA fatigue and callback scams. [Insert stat: vishing-related incidents, source]

How This Scam Works

• Email: Lookalike domains and thread hijacking prompt credential capture or malware installs.
• SMS: Delivery/tax refund lures send to credential-harvesting pages.
• Voice: Agents pose as IT/security to elicit MFA codes or push approvals.

Warning Signs

• Urgent password resets or unusual DocuSign/SharePoint requests.
• Unfamiliar domains, shortened links, and mismatched display names.
• Unexpected passwordless/MFA prompts when you’re not logging in.

Protection Strategies

• Use phishing-resistant MFA (FIDO2/passkeys) and disable SMS-based MFA where possible.
• Enable URL protection and attachment sandboxing in your email security gateway.
• Adopt a password manager and enforce unique credentials with SSO.
• Run quarterly phishing simulations tailored to your industry.

Industry Expert Insights

– AI lowers the cost of convincing pretext creation, so defenders must raise verification standards, not just awareness. Security leaders recommend strong identity controls and transaction verification as the highest ROI controls right now. [Insert expert quote or stat with source]
– BEC and vendor fraud are likely to remain top enterprise loss drivers. Controls that blend policy (dual approval), identity (FIDO2), and email authentication (DMARC) see the fastest measurable impact. [Insert recent survey/benchmark stat + source]
– Consumers and seniors benefit most from simple, rehearsed playbooks: hang up, verify via known numbers, never pay with gift cards/crypto, and ask a second person before big transfers. [Insert stat: reduction in victimization after training, with source]

Immediate Action Steps

• General Consumers:
  • Set bank/credit alerts for transactions and new payees; enable account lock features.
  • Use passkeys or FIDO2 keys for email, cloud storage, and crypto exchanges.
  • Create a family “money safety” rule: no wires or crypto without a call-back to a known number.
  • Bookmark official sites; never click account-recovery links from messages.
• Business Owners:
  • Roll out phishing-resistant MFA and conditional access for all users; disable legacy auth.
  • Enforce vendor bank change call-backs via known numbers; require two-person approval over a set threshold.
  • Implement DMARC p=reject, domain monitoring, and automatic impersonation detection.
  • Run quarterly tabletop exercises for BEC, deepfake calls, and ransomware triage.
  • Cyber insurance: review wire fraud/social engineering coverage and pre-breach control requirements.
• Elderly Users and Caregivers:
  • Post a “No Gift Cards. No Crypto. No Urgent Wires.” note near phones and computers.
  • Set up call-screening and block unknown callers; use a shared family code word.
  • Restrict remote-access tools, and set daily bank transfer limits plus alerts to a caregiver.
  • Ask a second person before any payment or new investment.
• Tech-Savvy Users:
  • Use hardware security keys; enroll in advanced protection programs where available.
  • Enable DNS filtering and browser isolation for risky links; sandbox unfamiliar files.
  • Audit OAuth app grants and revoke unused access; rotate API keys.
  • For crypto: hardware wallets, multisig for larger holdings, and periodic approval revokes.

Conclusion

Tech scammers are moving faster, but you can move smarter. In 2025, the best defense is simple, verified workflows—strong identity, out-of-band checks, and a culture that slows down for money movement. Replace “trust” with “verify,” put guardrails where the money moves, and rehearse your response before it’s needed. Editor action: Insert the latest, properly cited statistics in the marked areas and publish—your readers will have a clear, practical plan to protect your wallet and your business today.