Americans lost a record $4.2 billion in 2020 after falling victim to online scams, almost half the total loss of $7.6 billion over the previous three years, a newly-published report shows.
Released Thursday, identity verification service Social Catfish’s first-ever “State of Internet Scams” study said the dramatic spike could be attributed to increased online activity as more people shopped, worked and learned from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
More Americans signed contracts to buy homes in May, a surprising rebound after months of cooling in the housing market, where lack of inventory has pushed prices to record levels.
The National Association of Realtors’ index of pending home sales rose 8% to 114.7 in last month, the highest reading for May since 2005. That’s up from 106.2 in April. An index of 100 is equal to the level of contract activity in 2001.
Complaints regarding online scams and investment fraud have reached record-breaking levels, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has logged one million complaints in the last 14 months, bringing the total number of crimes reported to six million.
President Joe Biden will push the case for his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan in the reliably Republican state of Louisiana — directly challenging GOP lawmakers who say that low taxes for corporations and the wealthy will fuel economic growth.
Biden is leaning into the stagecraft of the presidency on Thursday by choosing to speak in the city of Lake Charles in front of a 70-year-old bridge that is 20 years past its designed lifespan.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Tuesday the U.S. economy remains in crisis from the pandemic even as she defended developing plans for future tax increases to pay for new public investments.
Yellen spoke at a hearing of the House Financial Services Committee that was ostensibly to discuss the country’s recovery from the coronavirus-triggered recession, but turned instead into a skirmish over priorities far beyond it.
© 2021 Equities News | Equities.com, Inc.
* All dates and time are being displayed in Eastern Standard Time (EST).
