Key Takeaways

• Public U.S. cybercrime and fraud reporting is much stronger by age than by gender. Major federal sources like the FTC Consumer Sentinel Data Book and FBI IC3 annual reports emphasize age, complaint type, and loss categories more than gender breakouts.
• Pew’s 2025 survey on online scams and attacks provides a useful gender benchmark: 76% of women and 70% of men said they have experienced at least one online scam or attack.
• The same Pew survey found 24% of men and 18% of women said they had lost money because of an online scam or attack.
• Pew also found women were somewhat more likely than men to report several scam experiences, while men were slightly more likely to report losing money. That suggests exposure and financial outcome do not always move together.
• Because federal complaint datasets do not consistently foreground gender in headline summaries, any “gender breakdown” page should be careful not to overstate conclusions.
• The best evidence-supported conclusion is that both men and women are heavily affected, but the pattern of exposure and loss may differ by scam type and context. This is a synthesis of the available survey evidence and the limits of federal headline reporting.

CORE STATISTICS

• 76% of women said they have experienced at least one online scam or attack.
• 70% of men said the same.
• 18% of women said they had lost money due to an online scam or attack.
• 24% of men said they had lost money due to an online scam or attack.
• The FTC reported 2.6 million fraud reports and more than $12.5 billion in fraud losses in 2024, but its headline summaries focused on category, age, and contact method rather than a gender breakout.
• The FBI’s 2025 IC3 report documented 1,008,597 complaints and losses above $20 billion, but the public summary similarly emphasized category and age more than gender.

TRENDS & INSIGHTS

The key insight here is not that one gender is “the main victim” of cybercrime. The better-supported insight is that gender differences appear real but nuanced. Pew’s 2025 survey suggests women may report broader exposure to online scams and attacks, while men may be somewhat more likely to report financial loss from those events.

That pattern may reflect differences in scam type, digital behavior, financial exposure, or reporting patterns, but the available public data does not fully settle which explanation matters most. So this page should stay grounded: there is some useful gender-related evidence, but not enough to support sweeping claims.

Another important point is methodological. Many widely cited fraud datasets are designed primarily to track complaint volume, loss categories, contact methods, and age patterns. Gender often appears less prominently in top-line releases, which means the public evidence base is thinner than it is for age-based analysis.

REAL-WORLD CONTEXT

For consumers, the practical takeaway is simple: cybercrime is not concentrated in just one gender. Men and women both face high scam exposure, and both face substantial risk of financial harm. The exact pattern may differ, but the need for protective habits is broad.

For a research page, that also means credibility matters more than trying to force a dramatic narrative. A strong “gender breakdown” page should highlight what the data clearly shows, explain what remains uncertain, and avoid overclaiming. That conclusion follows from the contrast between Pew’s detailed survey data and the more limited gender detail in federal headline sources.

WHO IS MOST AT RISK

• Men and women are both at substantial risk of scam exposure.
• Women may report broader scam exposure across online behaviors.
• Men may be somewhat more likely to report losing money once a scam or attack occurs.
• Adults with weak passwords, poor verification habits, or heavy exposure to scam texts, calls, and emails remain high risk regardless of gender. This is an inference supported by the broader FTC, FBI, and Pew findings.

QUICK CHECKLIST (what this means)

• Cybercrime affects both men and women at high levels.
• Public gender data is thinner than age-based scam data.
• Exposure and loss are not the same thing.
• Gender differences should be described cautiously and specifically.
• The safest conclusion is that broad protective habits matter more than demographic assumptions. This is an analytical conclusion based on the evidence above.

HOW TO STAY PROTECTED

• Use strong, unique passwords and enable MFA on key accounts. That advice applies across all demographic groups and aligns with the broader breach and scam evidence.
• Treat urgent messages and account warnings skeptically until independently verified.
• Focus on actual behaviors and exposures rather than assuming risk based on gender alone. This is a practical inference from the limited but useful gender-specific evidence.
• Discuss scams openly in households and families, since exposure is broad across groups.

CITABLE STATEMENTS

• Pew found 76% of women and 70% of men said they have experienced at least one online scam or attack.
• Pew found 24% of men and 18% of women said they had lost money because of an online scam or attack.
• The FTC reported more than $12.5 billion in fraud losses in 2024.
• IC3 reported 1,008,597 complaints and losses above $20 billion in 2025.
• Public fraud reporting is generally stronger by age and category than by gender. This is a synthesis based on how FTC and FBI headline reports are structured.

SOURCES

• Pew Research Center, Online Scams and Attacks in America Today.
• FTC, Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book 2024.
• FTC, 2024 fraud-loss release.
• FBI IC3, 2025 Internet Crime Report.