Stop SCAMS Act Mandates Federal Agencies Standardize Fraud Data and Report on Training Effectiveness

If you’ve ever had a grandparent lose money to a gift card scam or spent an hour on the phone with your bank trying to reverse a fraudulent charge, you know the scale of the scam problem in this country. The Stop Schemes, Cyberfraud, Abuse, Manipulation, and Swindles Act—or the Stop SCAMS Act—is essentially a mandate for the federal government to get its act together and fight fraud with a unified strategy.

The Government’s New Anti-Scam Playbook

This legislation tackles the fact that right now, when the FBI, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) talk about scams, they often use different definitions and track different data points. The Stop SCAMS Act demands a unified approach. Specifically, it requires the Director of the FBI, in coordination with the FTC and CFPB, to develop and implement a government-wide strategy to counter scams within one year of the law’s enactment. Crucially, they must adopt a single, government-wide definition of “scam” and its various types, which is a massive, necessary step toward consistent enforcement and public education.

Standardizing the Data and Counting the Cost

One of the biggest real-world impacts of this bill is the push for better data. Right now, estimates of scam losses are all over the map because agencies don't track the same things. This bill requires agencies to explore ways to standardize data collection, consistently tracking key metrics like the scam type, the dollar loss amount, and the payment method used (think wire transfer vs. cryptocurrency). Within two years, the FBI Director must produce a single, government-wide estimate of the total number of consumers affected by scams annually—and this has to include an estimate of unreported incidents. This means we should finally get a clearer picture of the true scope of the problem, which is likely much larger than current figures suggest, giving policymakers and law enforcement the evidence they need to allocate resources effectively.

Accountability for Agencies

The bill also puts the three key agencies—the FBI, the CFPB, and the FTC—on the clock for reporting and training accountability. Within one year, each agency must publicly report an estimate of the number of scam-related complaints they receive and the estimated dollar losses associated with them. More importantly, they must establish metrics and a plan to measure the effectiveness of their anti-scam training programs, whether those are in-person events or webinars. For everyday consumers, this means the anti-scam advice you get from the government shouldn't just be a box-checking exercise; the agencies now have to prove that their training actually works to protect people. If you’re a small business owner relying on the FTC’s resources to train your staff against phishing, this mandate offers a mechanism to ensure those resources are high quality.