The most financially damaging cybercrimes in your state
Published 7:00 pm Thursday, November 18, 2021
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The most financially damaging cybercrimes in your state
Americans reported losing more than $4.2 billion to cybercrime in 2020. Cybercrime is everywhere, partly because many of us now carry computers with us almost all the time. These crimes range from real estate fraud to refusing to pay for eBay items, from fake online romances to massive data breaches. The states all have legislation related to computer crimes, but the FBI handles the most complaints because of the federal or even international nature of many cybercrimes. These crimes cross state and national borders easily due to the internet.
Using data from the FBI’s Internet Complaints Center (IC3) 2020 Internet Crime Report, Twingate reports on the most financially damaging cybercrimes in your state in 2020 broken down by crime type and the loss reported by the victim. Crimes were ranked based on the total reported loss by all victims, though the reported loss per victim is also included. According to the report, in 2020, the IC3 received 105,301 complaints from victims over 60 with total losses in excess of $966 million.
Read on to see the most damaging cybercrimes in your state, along with quick definitions and additional facts about those crimes. The best way to prevent cybercrime is to be an informed, safe internet user.
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Alabama
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $13,747,390
— Victim count: 179
— Average loss per victim: $76,801
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,999,229
— Victim count: 226
— Average loss per victim: $22,120
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,026,393
— Victim count: 89
— Average loss per victim: $22,768
Alabama has an extensive law against computer crime, but many cybercrimes fall into the area of social engineering, a term that suggests using human contact to trick others into offering information. This is true for romance cybercrime, where a user is catfished by a fraudster.
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Alaska
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,770,348
— Victim count: 75
— Average loss per victim: $36,938
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,672,178
— Victim count: 92
— Average loss per victim: $18,176
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Tech Support monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $532,111
— Victim count: 62
— Average loss per victim: $8,582
In Alaska, business email compromise or email address compromise (BEC/EAC) is as big a problem as it is everywhere. In this attack, users are often phished using compromised links. Once they click or even share passwords, hackers are able to take over their accounts.
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Arizona
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $30,563,349
— Victim count: 365
— Average loss per victim: $83,735
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $12,068,910
— Victim count: 559
— Average loss per victim: $21,590
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Tech Support monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,737,849
— Victim count: 435
— Average loss per victim: $13,190
Arizona has an extensive computer crimes law that has been amended to include even more kinds of offenses over time. The third-most-common crime type is tech support monetary loss, which can involve giving remote access to a hacker. This type can even include people who pretend to be tech support in person and gain access that way.
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Arkansas
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $9,667,334
— Victim count: 87
— Average loss per victim: $111,119
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,816,994
— Victim count: 149
— Average loss per victim: $12,195
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,149,209
— Victim count: 35
— Average loss per victim: $32,835
Arkansas’ detailed computer crime law includes a full glossary of terms and extensive definitions of each level of misdemeanor and felony. The state’s third-most-damaging crime type, investment loss, includes fraudulent opportunities to invest in real estate or the stock market.
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California
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $219,121,752
— Victim count: 2,924
— Average loss per victim: $74,939
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $120,492,182
— Victim count: 3,110
— Average loss per victim: $38,743
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $65,674,226
— Victim count: 1,026
— Average loss per victim: $64,010
In California, the first small computer offense can come with up to a year in jail or a $5,000 fine. The business email or email address compromise (BEC/EAC) takes over user access, and from there, the hacker can send a new batch of phishing messages to the user’s entire address book.
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Colorado
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $48,491,996
— Victim count: 495
— Average loss per victim: $97,964
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Spoofing monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $17,975,365
— Victim count: 514
— Average loss per victim: $34,972
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $11,802,982
— Victim count: 439
— Average loss per victim: $26,886
In Colorado, losses of at least $2,000 turn a computer crime into a felony. Spoofing, the state’s second-most-damaging computer crime, involves pretending to be an email address from someplace credible like a bank. From there, the hackers may ask for money and then steal the money as well as the financial information.
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Connecticut
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $22,910,309
— Victim count: 269
— Average loss per victim: $85,168.43
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,630,798
— Victim count: 199
— Average loss per victim: $28,295
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Tech Support monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,889,909
— Victim count: 223
— Average loss per victim: $17,444
In Connecticut, destroying computer equipment itself is covered under the state’s extensive computer crimes law. If someone lied to gain access to a computer and then destroyed it, that would likely be a tech support loss.
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Delaware
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,641,363
— Victim count: 67
— Average loss per victim: $39,423
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Phishing/Vishing/Smishing/Pharming monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $937,258
— Victim count: 75
— Average loss per victim: $12,497
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Corporate Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $904,126
— Victim count: 9
— Average loss per victim: $100,458
Delaware’s most damaging crimes include monetary loss from a corporate data breach—where huge lists of consumer information are compromised, often including unprotected financial details. In this case, the crime starts by hacking the list in the first place. After that, the criminals have reams of new data to try to use for fraudulent purchases and more.
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District of Columbia
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $11,925,252
— Victim count: 143
— Average loss per victim: $83,393
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,131,734
— Victim count: 71
— Average loss per victim: $44,109
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Spoofing monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,092,723
— Victim count: 135
— Average loss per victim: $22,909
It’s no surprise that Washington D.C.’s computer crimes law specifically lists out national security information as an item of interest. Business email and email address compromise (BEC/EAC) also has special freight in a city where so much of the nation’s vital government business is done.
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Florida
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $115,001,364
— Victim count: 1,381
— Average loss per victim: $83,274
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Identity Theft monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $42,027,595
— Victim count: 6,334
— Average loss per victim: $6,635
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $40,173,934
— Victim count: 1,603
— Average loss per victim: $25,062
Florida’s computer crimes law includes a special section prohibiting the theft or other unauthorized use of public utilities. The state’s second-most-damaging crime type, identity theft, is a wide category that can start when someone’s Social Security number leaks from a compromised corporate network.
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Georgia
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $34,575,245
— Victim count: 476
— Average loss per victim: $72,637
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $13,182,112
— Victim count: 2,975
— Average loss per victim: $4,431
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Spoofing monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $11,432,298
— Victim count: 721
— Average loss per victim: $15,856
In Georgia, the second-most-damaging crime type is non-payment or non-delivery loss. This type is common on sites like eBay, where users may win auctions for valuable collectibles, but use fraudulent information to temporarily pay for them, for example.
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Hawaii
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,948,292
— Victim count: 67
— Average loss per victim: $58,930
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Tech Support monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,282,801
— Victim count: 72
— Average loss per victim: $31,706
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,810,905
— Victim count: 109
— Average loss per victim: $16,614
In Hawaii, accessing a computer with intent to steal something is immediately a felony. With nearly $60,000 per victim lost in business email and email address compromise (BEC/EAC), these are not trifling amounts to be defrauded.
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Idaho
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,032,789
— Victim count: 78
— Average loss per victim: $38,882
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,390,809
— Victim count: 27
— Average loss per victim: $88,548
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,126,196
— Victim count: 130
— Average loss per victim: $16,355
Idaho’s forward-looking computer crimes law dates back to 1984, before many users even had computers for home use. Romance fraud, the third-most-damaging crime type in the state, is overall the top form of computer fraud loss in the nation.
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Illinois
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $88,804,328
— Victim count: 735
— Average loss per victim: $120,822
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $14,036,350
— Victim count: 688
— Average loss per victim: $20,402
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $9,099,966
— Victim count: 163
— Average loss per victim: $55,828
In Illinois, a high number of cyber crime victims can be expected because there are a large number of companies based in the populous state. In 2020, a data breach in the state’s unemployment system led to a huge class action lawsuit by more than 32,000 unemployment applicants who had personal information compromised.
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Indiana
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $19,593,072
— Victim count: 196
— Average loss per victim: $99,965
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,180,026
— Victim count: 332
— Average loss per victim: $12,590
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,595,167
— Victim count: 133
— Average loss per victim: $19,513
In Indiana, a 2021 data breach at the state’s Department of Health targeted contact-tracing data associated with the pandemic. The breach was by a company that apparently finds vulnerabilities as a way to drum up payments.
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Iowa
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,681,056
— Victim count: 154
— Average loss per victim: $56,370
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,507,557
— Victim count: 722
— Average loss per victim: $4,858
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,281,307
— Victim count: 145
— Average loss per victim: $22,630
Iowa’s most damaging crime type, business email or email address compromise (BEC/EAC), found the spotlight in 2018. That year, a data breach targeted the contact and health information of 1.4 million users of a particular health system.
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Kansas
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,030,047
— Victim count: 127
— Average loss per victim: $63,229
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Corporate Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,879,505
— Victim count: 16
— Average loss per victim: $242,469
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,186,463
— Victim count: 136
— Average loss per victim: $16,077
State laws cover individual states when they’re part of federal or even international data breaches. In 2019, Equifax paid more than $700 million to settle over a breach that affected the people of Kansas.
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Kentucky
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,209,703
— Victim count: 104
— Average loss per victim: $30,863
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,471,145
— Victim count: 174
— Average loss per victim: $14,202
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Identity Theft monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,645,925
— Victim count: 211
— Average loss per victim: $7,801
In Kentucky, seven separate statutes cover the huge area of computer crimes. Identity theft, the state’s third-most-damaging crime type, is an umbrella that covers a variety of methods of defrauding computer users. The ultimate goal is to be able to access their identifying information like Social Security numbers.
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Louisiana
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $7,575,148
— Victim count: 141
— Average loss per victim: $53,724
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $7,221,414
— Victim count: 228
— Average loss per victim: $31,673
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,942,669
— Victim count: 1,184
— Average loss per victim: $2,485
A Louisiana hospital system had its patient data breached in 2020. That attack targeted one email address and then extracted information from the confidential messages it contained.
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Maine
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,828,104
— Victim count: 67
— Average loss per victim: $42,211
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,514,636
— Victim count: 57
— Average loss per victim: $26,573
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,257,930
— Victim count: 71
— Average loss per victim: $17,717
In Maine, the third-most-damaging crime type is the real estate or rental monetary loss. In this category of crime, users may put down payments or rental deposits on properties that don’t exist or were never available.
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Maryland
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $22,461,793
— Victim count: 449
— Average loss per victim: $50,026
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $13,128,118
— Victim count: 405
— Average loss per victim: $32,415
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Government Impersonation monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,324,441
— Victim count: 278
— Average loss per victim: $22,750
Maryland’s third-most damaging crime type is government impersonation. In this type of crime, a hacker pretends to be a government official trying to collect money, for example, by asking the user to pay an outstanding tax bill.
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Massachusetts
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $55,352,075
— Victim count: 532
— Average loss per victim: $104,045
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,363,833
— Victim count: 369
— Average loss per victim: $22,666
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,006,260
— Victim count: 361
— Average loss per victim: $22,178
Massachusetts’ third-most-damaging crime type is the confidence fraud or romance scam. The romance scam in particular has doubled in reports nationwide between 2015 and 2018.
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Michigan
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $28,616,190
— Victim count: 572
— Average loss per victim: $50,028
– #2 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $26,366,450
— Victim count: 492
— Average loss per victim: $53,590
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Other monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $7,708,362
— Victim count: 179
— Average loss per victim: $43,063
Michigan is unusual in that its leading crime is the romance scam. According to a Federal Trade Commission report, people over 70 have the greatest individual losses for this type of crime, which averages $10,000 nationwide.
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Minnesota
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $35,690,042
— Victim count: 328
— Average loss per victim: $108,811
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,887,499
— Victim count: 307
— Average loss per victim: $22,435
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Corporate Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,033,913
— Victim count: 38
— Average loss per victim: $106,156
In Minnesota, the third-most-damaging crime type is resulting from corporate data breaches. In some cases, these crimes are possible because corporations are keeping vulnerable information in ill-advised, unprotected formats that hackers can easily find and identify.
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Mississippi
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $12,868,799
— Victim count: 57
— Average loss per victim: $225,768
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,906,816
— Victim count: 135
— Average loss per victim: $14,125
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,033,097
— Victim count: 722
— Average loss per victim: $1,431
Perpetrators of romance scams have a variety of operating modes to ensure they can get the most money from their victims. This includes requesting prepaid cards or asking the victims to wire money directly to them, which limits reversibility and increases access to the money.
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Missouri
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $91,191,387
— Victim count: 241
— Average loss per victim: $378,387
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $9,238,380
— Victim count: 339
— Average loss per victim: $27,252
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,370,742
— Victim count: 1,738
— Average loss per victim: $1,939
In 2021, a Missouri newspaper found that the personal information of 100,000 teachers was easily available on a state website. The state hired a security firm to restructure the database.
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Montana
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,172,601
— Victim count: 7
— Average loss per victim: $167,514.43
– #2 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,079,687
— Victim count: 53
— Average loss per victim: $20,371.45
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $936,068
— Victim count: 68
— Average loss per victim: $13,765.71
Montana’s leading most damaging crime type is investment monetary loss, which involves a user paying money into an investment scheme that is not real. Because regular investment so often involves monetary loss, hackers may find it easier to trick users into accepting these losses.
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Nebraska
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Other monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,935,109
— Victim count: 35
— Average loss per victim: $83,860
– #2 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,877,131
— Victim count: 76
— Average loss per victim: $37,857
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,127,112
— Victim count: 130
— Average loss per victim: $16,362
This year, the state of Nebraska is settling a class action lawsuit with hundreds of thousands of users whose data was breached in 2020. The hackers gained access to users’ Social Security numbers and other identifying information.
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Nevada
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $17,630,186
— Victim count: 181
— Average loss per victim: $97,404
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,041,062
— Victim count: 362
— Average loss per victim: $16,688
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,959,034
— Victim count: 106
— Average loss per victim: $56,217
In 2021, a popular chain of slot machine venues in Las Vegas had a data breach. The parent company of Dotty’s informed customers that their identifying information—including driver’s license numbers—had likely been accessed and captured by criminals.
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New Hampshire
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,623,336
— Victim count: 69
— Average loss per victim: $23,527
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $820,326
— Victim count: 71
— Average loss per victim: $11,554
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Tech Support monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $513,466
— Victim count: 58
— Average loss per victim: $8,853
New Hampshire’s third-most-damaging crime type, tech support monetary loss, can include people pretending to be customer service for internet service providers, for example. They may offer to send helpful links that are then redirected to phishing sites.
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New Jersey
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $43,452,031
— Victim count: 493
— Average loss per victim: $88,138
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $11,545,919
— Victim count: 485
— Average loss per victim: $23,806
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $9,075,647
— Victim count: 3,017
— Average loss per victim: $3,008
In recent weeks, the state of New Jersey settled with an area fertility clinic after a data breach. That breach exposed the medical and personal data of more than 14,000 people, including 11,000 New Jersey residents.
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New Mexico
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $9,947,912
— Victim count: 81
— Average loss per victim: $122,814
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,358,676
— Victim count: 189
— Average loss per victim: $28,353
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,038,960
— Victim count: 27
— Average loss per victim: $75,517
In 2021, the University of New Mexico shared that a data breach had occurred. In that breach, the identifying information of 600,000 people was accessed and captured.
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New York
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $268,343,363
— Victim count: 1,300
— Average loss per victim: $206,418
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $26,286,815
— Victim count: 1,103
— Average loss per victim: $23,832
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $20,457,949
— Victim count: 462
— Average loss per victim: $44,281
New York’s high population and huge number of corporations makes its residents and workers a prime target for fraudsters. In 2017, two New York hospitals settled with the government to pay $4.8 million in response to privacy law-violating data breaches.
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North Carolina
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $24,878,389
— Victim count: 473
— Average loss per victim: $52,597
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $14,446,583
— Victim count: 558
— Average loss per victim: $25,890
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,840,457
— Victim count: 111
— Average loss per victim: $52,617
Some North Carolina state employees were surprised to find out that some of their vital information was carelessly leaked to the public. While the data wasn’t breached, using it to steal identities or otherwise extract financial gain or access is still a crime.
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North Dakota
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Personal Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $20,144,420
— Victim count: 55
— Average loss per victim: $366,262
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Identity Theft monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $20,051,998
— Victim count: 84
— Average loss per victim: $238,714
– #3 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,910,025
— Victim count: 31
— Average loss per victim: $61,614
North Dakota’s surprising most damaging computer crime is personal data breach loss with an eye-popping $366,000 average loss. The state says data breaches are often caused by something as simple as reusing passwords, which they say users should not do.
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Ohio
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $129,728,566
— Victim count: 485
— Average loss per victim: $267,482
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $11,425,775
— Victim count: 3,099
— Average loss per victim: $3,687
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $7,706,835
— Victim count: 528
— Average loss per victim: $14,596
In November, the Toledo County Library experienced an outage of its website and computer networks after some kind of cybersecurity incident. This kind of incident could point to a ransomware attack, where hackers demand a ransom in exchange for restoring a network.
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Oklahoma
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,819,845
— Victim count: 149
— Average loss per victim: $45,771
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,497,201
— Victim count: 212
— Average loss per victim: $21,213
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,685,731
— Victim count: 984
— Average loss per victim: $1,713
In 2019, a massive data breach affected the Oklahoma Securities Commission. The data included notes on FBI investigations from a 30-year period dating back to 1986.
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Oregon
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $10,940,974
— Victim count: 263
— Average loss per victim: $41,601
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,328,322
— Victim count: 308
— Average loss per victim: $27,040
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Identity Theft monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,652,823
— Victim count: 316
— Average loss per victim: $21,053
In just the first nine months of 2021, the state of Oregon reported more than 130 data breaches. That compares with 110 reported breaches in all of 2020 and 99 in 2019.
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Pennsylvania
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $54,695,862
— Victim count: 671
— Average loss per victim: $81,514
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $12,235,982
— Victim count: 736
— Average loss per victim: $16,625
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,426,937
— Victim count: 403
— Average loss per victim: $20,911
In Pennsylvania, there was a data breach of information associated with COVID-19 contact tracing. The state blamed a subcontractor for not obeying the state’s security protocols and allowing data on 72,000 people to be hacked .
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Rhode Island
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $2,506,218
— Victim count: 85
— Average loss per victim: $29,485
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,381,336
— Victim count: 80
— Average loss per victim: $17,267
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,232,834
— Victim count: 356
— Average loss per victim: $3,463
In Rhode Island, the health records of 3,000 people were hacked in 2019. That breach was detected in realtime and sealed, but the information was still exposed.
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South Carolina
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,367,818
— Victim count: 219
— Average loss per victim: $38,209
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,439,116
— Victim count: 250
— Average loss per victim: $17,756
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $3,502,952
— Victim count: 169
— Average loss per victim: $20,728
South Carolina had a massive data breach in 2012, when 6 million residents’ data was exposed to hackers after a computer user clicked on a malware link. The hackers had weeks of access to the data and were able to invade 44 state computer-based systems.
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South Dakota
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Government Impersonation monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $749,263
— Victim count: 32
— Average loss per victim: $23,414
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $585,685
— Victim count: 32
— Average loss per victim: $18,303
– #3 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $541,372
— Victim count: 20
— Average loss per victim: $27,069
In 2020, South Dakota had a now-familiar data breach of a database associated with COVID-19 patients. This began at an internet hosting provider whose servers hosted more than 200 state websites when they were hacked in June of 2020.
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Tennessee
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $20,831,147
— Victim count: 249
— Average loss per victim: $83,659
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,526,218
— Victim count: 334
— Average loss per victim: $13,552
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,465,348
— Victim count: 71
— Average loss per victim: $62,892
In 2021, a staffing agency with a location in Nashville, Tennessee, experienced a data breach that affects thousands of company associates. The leaked information included applicants who hadn’t even had subsequent contact with the organization.
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Texas
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $136,223,701
— Victim count: 1,662
— Average loss per victim: $81,964
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $42,181,951
— Victim count: 1,602
— Average loss per victim: $26,331
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Personal Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $37,720,530
— Victim count: 3,394
— Average loss per victim: $11,114
In 2020, a state subcontractor disclosed that more than 27 million Texas state driver’s licenses were exposed in a data breach. The data was stored on an unsecured external drive.
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Utah
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Other monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $15,830,458
— Victim count: 66
— Average loss per victim: $239,855
– #2 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $13,186,099
— Victim count: 175
— Average loss per victim: $75,349
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $6,036,574
— Victim count: 296
— Average loss per victim: $20,394
In 2012, a Utah health care provider disclosed a data breach that affected nearly 800,000 state residents. Of those, nearly 300,000 had their Social Security numbers revealed.
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Vermont
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,521,042
— Victim count: 33
— Average loss per victim: $46,092
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Overpayment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $734,122
— Victim count: 16
— Average loss per victim: $45,882
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $671,040
— Victim count: 46
— Average loss per victim: $14,588
Vermont’s second-most-damaging crime type is overpayment monetary loss. This scam involves sending someone a sum of money that they, then, keep part of before sending the rest to an additional party. Usually, the initial payment bounces while the user’s own money is still gone.
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Virginia
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $44,950,407
— Victim count: 564
— Average loss per victim: $79,699
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $18,052,839
— Victim count: 531
— Average loss per victim: $33,998
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Personal Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,150,181
— Victim count: 1,187
— Average loss per victim: $6,866
In October 2021, the state of Virginia disclosed that there was a data breach in the state’s Individual and Family Support Program portal. This happened despite 17 months of testing of the portal software before it finally opened to the public.
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Washington
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $38,009,931
— Victim count: 525
— Average loss per victim: $72,400
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $14,839,297
— Victim count: 579
— Average loss per victim: $25,629
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Other monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $8,419,979
— Victim count: 189
— Average loss per victim: $44,550
In February 2021, the state of Washington reported that its unemployment records were breached. The data of more than 1.6 million state residents was compromised by a third party application.
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West Virginia
– #1 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,232,777
— Victim count: 107
— Average loss per victim: $11,521
– #2 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,070,040
— Victim count: 24
— Average loss per victim: $44,585
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Non-payment/Non-delivery monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $888,281
— Victim count: 564
— Average loss per victim: $1,575
West Virginia’s Prestera Health announced in 2021 that it was subject to a data breach in 2020. The breach affected the data of patients at Prestera’s 55 locations around the state, and the breach was caused by unauthorized access to a business email address.
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Wisconsin
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $16,409,640
— Victim count: 233
— Average loss per victim: $70,428
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Confidence Fraud/Romance monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $5,664,897
— Victim count: 355
— Average loss per victim: $15,957
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Investment monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $4,519,849
— Victim count: 88
— Average loss per victim: $51,362
In 2020, the Wisconsin legislature introduced the Wisconsin Data Privacy Act. This set of three bills is designed to protect state users from data breaches by requiring data-wielding organizations to install added and ensured security.
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Wyoming
– #1 Most damaging crime type: BEC/EAC monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,256,674
— Victim count: 36
— Average loss per victim: $34,908
– #2 Most damaging crime type: Real Estate/Rental monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $1,230,740
— Victim count: 16
— Average loss per victim: $76,921
– #3 Most damaging crime type: Corporate Data Breach monetary loss
— Total monetary loss: $958,000
— Victim count: 3
— Average loss per victim: $319,333
In April 2021, the Wyoming Department of Health announced that there was a data breach of 165,000 residents’ data beginning in November 2020. That’s more than a quarter of Wyoming’s entire population.
This story originally appeared on Twingate
and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
