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'Nigerian' scam and other crimes cost $198.4 million

Eric Rosenberg, Hearst Newspapers

Saturday, March 31, 2007

(03-31) 04:00 PDT Washington -- Americans lost a record amount to Internet fraud schemes last year, and the notorious "Nigerian 419" scam is blamed for the largest individual losses.

A government report on 2006 Internet crimes also records the sudden emergence of extortionists who use e-mail to deliver ominous threats that grave consequences await unless money is sent.

The new federal statistics show that Americans reported losing an all-time high of $198.4 million to Internet fraud in 2006, up 8 percent from 2005 levels of $183 million and 191 percent from 2004 levels of $68 million.

Law enforcement officials believe that actual losses are higher -- many victims don't report the crimes because they are embarrassed or afraid to do so.

Of the Internet criminals who could be traced to their location, 61 percent resided inside the United States, followed by criminals based in the United Kingdom at 16 percent. Nigeria-based criminals were next at 6 percent.

According to the new statistics, victims of the 419-type scams had an average loss of $5,100 last year, an increase of $100 per incident compared with 2005 levels and an increase of $2,100 per incident compared with 2004.

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