NEW YORK—Digital scams are eroding the very trust that underpins banking and payments, creating a growing systemic risk for financial institutions, according to “Financial Scams and Consumer Trust,” a joint report by PYMNTS Intelligence and Block.
The study—based on a survey of more than 15,000 U.S. consumers—finds that nearly 40% of households have fallen victim to scams in the past five years, with average losses ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars.
More strikingly, the victims are often younger, wealthier, and more educated consumers, underscoring that digital fluency no longer guarantees safety, PYMNTS explained.
For financial institutions, the findings represent a call to action: fraud prevention must now focus as much on preserving customer confidence as on stopping transactions. Scammers are exploiting AI-generated impersonations, social-media outreach, and instant-payment channels to trigger rapid responses—two-thirds of victims sent money within 24 hours of initial contact.
The report urges banks and credit unions to rethink fraud defenses by:
- Introducing “smart friction” in real-time payment flows to slow down high-risk activity
- Recognizing that fraud losses drive long-term disengagement—victims often cut back on mobile banking and e-commerce
- Prioritizing trust recovery: customers who are reimbursed or supported after a scam report markedly higher loyalty
In short, the research warns that as payments grow faster, trust has become the most valuable currency—and maintaining it may prove the toughest challenge for financial institutions in an instant-transaction world.