Scammers Cost Irish Adults €760 Million Last Year as Garda Fraud Backlog Reaches 60,000 Cases
Scammers cost Irish adults approximately €760 million in 2025, with 96% of the population targeted by scam attempts and the average victim losing €890, according to a new study published this week — findings that come as An Garda Síochána is managing a backlog of approximately 60,000 fraud-related cases and facing mounting pressure to significantly expand its cybercrime investigation capacity.
Background
Online fraud has become one of the most significant and rapidly growing crime categories in Ireland. The combination of widespread smartphone use, the proliferation of online banking and payment platforms, and the increasing sophistication of criminal networks — many of them operating from outside Ireland — has created an environment in which virtually every adult in the country is a potential target for scam attempts on a daily basis. The scale of the problem has grown dramatically in recent years, driven in part by the adoption of artificial intelligence tools by criminal networks that allow them to generate convincing phishing messages, deepfake videos, and personalised scam communications at scale.
The study, published by IT security group Ekco on 21 August 2026, is based on a survey of Irish adults extrapolated to the wider adult population. While survey-based estimates of fraud losses carry inherent uncertainty, the €760 million figure is consistent with data from financial institutions and law enforcement agencies, and represents a significant increase on previous estimates. AIB reported a 59% increase in payment fraud cases in its most recent annual report, and the Central Bank of Ireland has warned of a surge in "fraud recovery scams" — a particularly cynical form of fraud in which criminals target previous victims by charging fees under the guise of helping them recover stolen funds.
The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, which is responsible for investigating fraud and cybercrime, has been under significant pressure for several years. The bureau has faced criticism for slow response times and a lack of resources relative to the scale of the problem. The backlog of 60,000 fraud-related cases — reported by Garda sources — represents a significant failure of the criminal justice system to respond adequately to one of the most prevalent forms of crime in the country.
Key Developments
The Ekco study found that 96% of Irish adults were targeted by scam attempts in 2025, with individuals experiencing an average of five scam attempts per month — approximately 63 incidents per year. The most frequently reported scam was the "customs charge" request, which affected 48% of respondents. Other common patterns included requests to verify payment details (37%) and fake toll charge notifications (27%).
Approximately 22% of respondents admitted to falling for at least one scam, while nearly one in seven victims were targeted successfully two or more times during the year. The average loss per victim was €890, though the distribution is highly skewed — a small number of victims lose very large sums, often through investment fraud schemes that use deepfake videos of public figures to lend credibility to fake investment platforms.
The study also found that 80% of those surveyed expressed confidence in their ability to identify phishing attempts — a figure that sits in stark contrast to the high success rate of scammers and suggests a significant gap between perceived and actual vulnerability. Perhaps most troublingly, a quarter of respondents labelled fraud victims as "naïve or careless" — an attitude that discourages reporting and makes it harder for victims to seek help.
Why It Matters
The €760 million figure represents a significant economic harm to Irish society — equivalent to roughly 0.2% of GDP, or the annual budget of a medium-sized government department. But the financial impact, while significant, is only part of the story. Fraud victims frequently report significant psychological harm — stress, anxiety, shame, and a loss of trust in digital systems — that can have lasting consequences for their wellbeing and their willingness to engage with online services. For elderly victims, who are disproportionately targeted by certain types of fraud, the impact can be particularly severe.
The Garda backlog of 60,000 cases is a serious governance failure. When victims of fraud report their experiences to the Garda and receive no meaningful response — because the system is overwhelmed — it sends a message that fraud is effectively a consequence-free crime. This perception, in turn, emboldens criminal networks and discourages victims from reporting future incidents. Breaking this cycle requires a significant investment in Garda cybercrime capacity — an investment that the government has been slow to make despite the scale of the problem.
Local Impact
Fraud affects people across Ireland, but certain demographics and communities are particularly vulnerable. Elderly people — especially those living alone in rural areas — are disproportionately targeted by phone-based scams, including the "grandparent scam" in which criminals impersonate a grandchild in distress to extract emergency payments. In urban areas, younger adults are more likely to be targeted by investment fraud and romance scams conducted through social media platforms. The geographic distribution of fraud losses broadly mirrors the distribution of the adult population, with Dublin, Cork, and Galway accounting for the largest absolute losses — though rural areas, where financial literacy resources and community support networks may be less accessible, often see higher per-capita impacts.
What's Next
The government is expected to announce additional resources for the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau in the Budget, following sustained pressure from opposition parties and consumer advocacy groups. The Department of Justice is also developing a national fraud prevention strategy, which is expected to be published before the end of the year. The Central Bank of Ireland will publish its annual fraud report in October, providing updated data on payment fraud losses across the banking sector. FraudSMART, the banking industry's fraud awareness initiative, is launching a new public awareness campaign in September focused on the growing threat of AI-enabled fraud.
