The US Federal Trade Commission reports that 38% of us actually buy things on the web. And 14% of the US adult population gets nailed following a first contact by email or visiting a website. That means at least 1.75 million knotheads were sucked in by web scammers last year.

The study also found that the median Internet loss is $60. Over three quarters of the victims either allowed the seller to take the money directly from their checking accounts or used online, non-credit card, payment systems. Seventy two percent were smart enough to use a credit card, which at least gave them some backup for complaints.

Most likely whiners after being taken to the cleaners?

  1. Six figure income (88%)
  2. Frequent web buyers (78%)
  3. College graduates (78%)
  4. Females (75%)
  5. Middlers between 25 and 34 (73%)
  6. Married folk (72%)

With a list like that, you’ll have to write your own punchline. We couldn’t make it past our minders.

See for yourself at FTC Consumer Fraud Survey.