Fraud linked to the Covid-19 pandemic has cost consumers $586 Million, according to dataFederal Trade Commission.

According to federal records, more than 269,000 Americans have filed fraud complaints between the start of 2020 and Oct. 14, 2021. According to federal data, consumers cited Covid and related terms as reasons for filing fraud complaints.

As measured by the median victim, $392 was lost in schemes that targeted online travelers and shoppers. Older Americans are more vulnerable to losses: Each senior lost $1,000.

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According to officials, however, the number of pandemic-related scams appears to be decreasing.

According to FTC data, there were 273 complaints from consumers filed on Thursday. This was based upon the rolling average of 14 days. It is the lowest point since March 16, 2020.

It’s also about eight times less than the 2,100-daily-complaint peak in early April this year, around the time Covid vaccinations were beginning to be deployed more broadly and the federal government was issuing $1,400 stimulus checks authorized by the American Rescue Plan.

The largest amount of scams reported to the FTC by online shoppers was approximately 57,600.

During the pandemic Americans were more likely to shop online because they spent less time inside.

But many were victims of “opportunistic websites” claiming to sell popular, in-demand items — anything from hand sanitizer and gloves to electronics, clothing and even puppies, according to the FTC. However, customers ordered these items and never received them.

It was also a common practice to price-gouge. This was the top pandemic-related concern in 2020. accordingAccording to the Consumer Federation of America, polls were conducted by state and regional consumer agencies. Many consumers complained that they were being charged excessive prices for products such as toilet paper, hand sanitizer and masks.

According to the report, Covid-related complaints came from both state and local government agencies in several other categories such as travel cancellations, schools, child care and travel cancellations.

FTC reports that vacation and travel-related scams are the leading causes of victims losing money totalling $81 million. dataThe agency said that. According to the agency, most fraud is related to cancellations or refunds.

Because the data are self-reported by customers, there’s a good chance that consumers have more complaints or losses than what is reported in official statistics.