Key takeaway: Merchants, processors and support teams should expect scam victims to show significantly higher psychological distress than identity theft victims. Teams should also avoid referring victims to third-party recovery services, because recovery scammers frequently target victims again — though ITRC’s data suggests trained victim support sharply reduces that risk.
General-consumer scam victims report suicidal ideation at more than three times the rate of traditional identity theft victims. That finding comes from the Identity Theft Resource Center’s 2026 Consumer Impact Report. ITRC released the report on Oct. 28, 2026, with support from Experian.
In August and September 2026, ITRC surveyed two groups. The first was 1,111 general U.S. consumers. The second was 197 people who had contacted ITRC for victim assistance in the prior year. Among general-consumer respondents, 80.5% of those who identified as scam victims reported suicidal ideation. By comparison, 24.5% of general-consumer respondents who identified as traditional identity theft victims reported suicidal ideation.
Suicidal ideation was far lower among scam victims who sought ITRC’s free assistance: just 15.1%. ITRC attributed the drop to the support those victims received. (If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.)
ITRC measured 14 financial, physical and emotional impact indicators across both victim types. Among general-consumer respondents, scam victims had an average adverse-impact rate of 33.7%, versus 17.3% for identity theft victims.
Separately, 29.5% of general-consumer scam victims said they lost $100,000 or more and never recovered it. Recovery scammers targeted 78.9% of these victims again, charging upfront fees to supposedly help recover lost funds. Among ITRC’s own victim-assistance clients, only 6.5% paid a recovery scammer — evidence, ITRC says, that specialized support reduces repeat victimization.
ITRC CEO Eva Velasquez said scams act as an acute trauma, while traditional identity theft acts as a chronic burden. Kathleen Peters, Experian’s chief innovation officer for identity and fraud, said protecting consumers requires collaboration across the ecosystem.
Why it matters: The severity gap between scam and identity theft victims matters for anyone who interacts with victims after the fact. Combined with the recovery-scam pattern the report documents, it means merchants, processors and payment platforms need trauma-aware support flows. They should also steer victims only toward verified recovery resources, not unvetted third parties. The report’s own data makes the case: ITRC’s trained advisors cut repeat recovery-scam victimization from 78.9% to 6.5%.
Sources: PR Newswire, and Help Net Security