Rising cyberscam losses expose gaps in EU response

Deutsche Welle · 🇩🇪 public Germany · Jun 10, 2026 · 1028 words · By David Hutt

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What to know about Rising cyberscam losses expose gaps in EU response

Rising cyberscam losses expose gaps in EU response June 10, 2026A landmark study on cyberscams in Europe released this week has found that 75% of adults encountered a scam in the past year.

Claims checked 26

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center80%

Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Rising cyberscam losses expose gaps in EU response June 10, 2026A landmark study on cyberscams in Europe released this week has found that 75% of adults encountered a scam in the past year.

Why it matters

While 71% of respondents said they were confident in recognizing scams, 8% of those exposed went on to interact with scammers.

Common ground

Some 16% of parents said their children had been approached by a scammer.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Rising cyberscam losses expose gaps in EU response?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Of those who interacted with a scam, 22% suffered a financial or data loss?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.dw.com/en/rising-cyberscam-losses-expose-gaps-in-eu-response/a-77487…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 26 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 16

info Single Source 5

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

report Misleading 1

info

Claim 1: “Of those who interacted with a scam, 22% suffered a financial or data loss”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for '22%' returned Taylor Swift songs and unrelated content; no evidence was found regarding the 22% financial/data loss figure for the GASA study.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — " 22 " is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her fourth studio album, Red (2012). It was released as the album's fourth single on March 12, 2013, by Big Machine Records.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/22_(Taylor_Swift_song)

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Mar 13, 2013 · Music video by Taylor Swift performing 22. ️🔥Stream/download ‘The Life of a Showgirl’: https://taylor.lnk.to/TSTheLifeofaSho...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgFeZr5ptV8

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Playing from 22 (Taylor's Version) Mix Save Autoplay Add similar content to the end of the queue
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=xGWTv4IQ7vQ

info

Claim 2: “around €50 billion ($57.7 billion) has been lost to scams in the last 12 months, according to the study by the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA)”

SINGLE SOURCE

One web search result mentions a GASA study on Europeans suffering staggering losses, but the specific figure of €50 billion ($57.7 billion) is not explicitly confirmed in the provided snippets, although the context matches. Other GASA reports cite different global figures ($442B or $1T).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) is a coalition of more than 50 major global entertainment companies and film studios, aimed at reducing online piracy of copyrighted material. ACE was l…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_for_Creativity_and_En…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A scam, or a confidence trick (shortened to con), is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using a combination of the victim's cred…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scam

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — A scam center, fraud factory, fraud park, scam factory, scam compound, scam hub, scam park, fraud center, fraud compound, or fraud hub is a collection of large fraudulent organizations usually involve…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scam_center

+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 3: “71% of respondents said they were confident in recognizing scams”

SINGLE SOURCE

The claim's specific figure (71%) appears in the same single web search result as claim 0. Other GASA reports (e.g., worldwide) show different figures (67%), meaning this specific 71% for the European study is only found in one source.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Gasa District (Dzongkha: དགའ་ས་རྫོང་ཁག།; Wylie: dgav-sa rdzong-khag, also མགར་ས་རྫོང་ཁག།) is one of the 20 dzongkhags (districts) comprising Bhutan. The capital of Gasa District is Gasa Dzong near Gas…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasa_District

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — GASA Group (Gartnernes Salgsforeninger; "co-operative marketing organisations") is a Danish company that imports and exports flowers, fruits, and vegetables. Founded in 1929 as a fruit, flowers and ve…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GASA

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Gasa or GASA may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasa

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 4: “Authorities in Thailand have linked border restrictions and supply cutoffs in efforts to disrupt illegal scam centers in Cambodia”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 5: “In 2024, the United States Institute of Peace estimated that the cyberscam industry could be worth nearly €11 billion ($12.7 billion) annually in Cambodia”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 6: “In October 2024, the Council of the EU sanctioned three individuals linked to Thit Linn Myaing Group in Myanmar for scam operations”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 7: “8% of those exposed went on to interact with scammers”

SINGLE SOURCE

The 8% interaction rate is mentioned in the same single web search result as claim 0. No other independent sources confirm this specific percentage for the European study.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Individuals are exposed to scams frequently, often as part of everyday digital interactions. Despite this high exposure, 86% of Americans report feeling confident they can recognize a scam.
https://gasa.org/knowledge-base/blog/scams-surge-across-the-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — online-scam-statistics-2026 Download. The GASA Global State of Scams 2025 Report — drawing on 46,000 respondents across 42 countries — estimates that $442 billion was lost to scams globally in 2025, w…
https://axis-intelligence.com/online-scam-statistics/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Investment scams are the most experienced type of scam in Indonesia, affecting two fifths of adults who have been contacted by scammers. Prevalence of experiencing types of scam in last 12 months. Yes…
https://www.mastercard.com/news/media/d5kh1jhd/20251027-gasa…

schedule

Claim 8: “Beijing has pressured Cambodia to also deport Chinese-born alleged scammers, including Chen Zhi, to stand trial back at home”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 9: “Some 16% of parents said their children had been approached by a scammer”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Search results mention GASA reports on children in Malaysia (21%), but no evidence was found regarding the specific 16% figure for parents in the European study.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Gasa or GASA may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasa

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 10: “Including scammers in Myanmar and Laos, these syndicates may be stealing more than €37.9 billion annually”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 11: “At the 2026 Global Fraud Summit in Vienna in March, EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said the European Commission would present an EU action plan against digital fraud before summer 2026”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 12: “On April 21, the EU co-organized the ASEAN Regional Seminar on Online Scams Fighting in Bangkok”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 13: “a landmark study on cyberscams in Europe released this week has found that 75% of adults encountered a scam in the past year”

SINGLE SOURCE

One web search result explicitly matches the claim's wording regarding the 75% figure and the 'landmark study on cyberscams in Europe'. No other independent sources corroborate this specific statistic.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Starting in late May 2026, several severe heatwaves affected Europe. Temperature records were broken in Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Ro…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_European_heatwaves

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 27th European Athletics Championships will be held from 10 to 16 August 2026 at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, United Kingdom. This is the first time that a British city will have staged the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_European_Athletics_Champi…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — A landmark study on cyberscams in Europe released this week has found that 75% of adults encountered a scam in the past year. While 71% of respondents said they were confident in recognizing scams, 8%…
https://www.dw.com/en/rising-cyberscam-losses-expose-gaps-in…

+ 2 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 14: “Last October, the US Treasury, working with the UK, sanctioned 146 targets linked to the Cambodia-based Prince Group”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 15: “The average financial loss was $2,735 (€2,369), with the highest average losses recorded in Switzerland, Denmark and Belgium”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the search results to support the average financial loss of $2,735 or the specific countries mentioned.

schedule

Claim 16: “Bangkok has repeatedly framed scam compounds across the border as a national security threat”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 17: “Many of the cyberscam networks in the region appear to be run by Chinese criminal groups”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 18: “GASA's report estimated scam losses in Germany were about €10.6 billion over the past 12 months”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the search results to support the specific estimate of €10.6 billion for Germany.

schedule

Claim 19: “at the 25th ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting in Brunei, the post-event joint statement referred repeatedly to online scams and scam centers in Southeast Asia”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 20: “Some 35% of those who reported their losses said their money was reimbursed by the organization they reported it to”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

report

Claim 21: “only 39% reported the incident to authorities”

MISLEADING

A search result mentions 39%, but it refers to the percentage of victims who 'received reimbursement from the organization to which they reported the incident' in Germany, not the percentage of people who reported the incident to authorities.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Among victims who reported their losses, 39% said they received reimbursement from the organization to which they reported the incident.The Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), in collaboration with Worl…
https://gasa.org/knowledge-base/blog/scams-continue-to-rise-…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — financial institutions. According to the “2024 Asia Scam Report,” which surveyed nearly 25,000 participants across 13 markets in the region and released by the nonprofit organization Global Anti-Scam …
https://opinion.inquirer.net/177718/alarming-text-scam-probl…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The most common types of scams, according to the GASA study involving 1,000 Filipino adults, are investment scams (65 percent), unexpected money scams (64 percent) and shopping scams (58 percent), wit…
https://qa.philstar.com/business/2025/12/22/2495909/curbing-…

schedule

Claim 22: “the US Justice Department indicted Prince Group chairman Chen Zhi... over alleged forced-labor scam compounds and filed... its largest-ever forfeiture action, involving around $15 billion in bitcoin”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 23: “Washington designated [Prince Group] as a transnational criminal organization”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 24: “the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), a nonprofit organization that polled around 22,200 people across 15 European countries”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While GASA is confirmed as a nonprofit organization, there is no evidence in the provided results confirming the specific sample size of 22,200 people across 15 European countries.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Scam centers in Cambodia are clandestine fraud operations, controlled by international and organized criminal networks specializing in online fraud and operating in Cambodia. Policy analysis has chara…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scam_centers_in_Cambodia

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 25: “Washington also moved against Cambodia-based Huione Group... and has sanctioned senators and tycoons close to the ruling Hun family”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 26: “In April 2025, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime estimated that the region's industrial-scale scam centers were generating almost €34 billion in annual profits”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.