Kiwis have lost a gross total of $265 million to fraud over the last 12 months with fraudsters and scammers using innovative methods to prey on vulnerable people.
The first Reported Fraud Monitor report for New Zealand by Payments NZ shows how fraud has occurred and includes information on the different types of scams hitting Kiwis most. The updated methodology this year provides a comprehensive overview from 12 banks of gross reported fraud that has happened over the past one year.
This year’s data also breaks down how fraud occurs and highlights the types of scams most commonly impacting New Zealanders.
Typology of frauds is:
- Compromised credentials – involves an unauthorised party taking control of a bank account. Common examples include phishing scams, malware, or the remote access of an account resulting in the discovery or disclosure of the account holders’ credentials.
- Products and services fraud – This fraud involves transfer of funds in exchange for a product or service whereby the recipient of the funds does not deliver the product or service. Common examples include investment scams and online marketplace scams.
- Relationship and trust fraud – This involves transfer of funds to a trusted party, or an impostor acting as a trusted or authoritative party, with no expectation of goods or services being exchanged for the transferred funds. In these cases, the seemingly trustworthy party can be an existing or emerging personal relationship, or a party pretending to be an authority or reputable company. Common examples include romance scams, inheritance scams, lottery scams and cold calls.
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) spokesperson Ian Caplin said this figure really hits home how much damage scams can cause to every day New Zealanders.
“Of the $265 million defrauded, about $126 million of reported scams involved authorised payments, where individuals were tricked into approving the transaction themselves,” said Caplin.
“The remaining $139 million came from unauthorised transactions, where scammers accessed accounts without the account holder’s knowledge.
“The biggest amounts defrauded came from products and services scams, which accounted for around $76 million of the total $265 million. Relationship and trust scams made up about $31 million, and compromised credentials scams account for $84 million.
“Together, these three types of scams make up nearly three-quarters of the total amount defrauded, with the rest spread across a range of other scam types.
“These figures show that scams are not only widespread but also increasingly deceptive. It’s critical that people stay alert and take steps to protect themselves and their finances.”
MBIE is urging Kiwis to be more vigilant and as part of the Fraud Awareness Week 2025, it is urging people to Stop, Check, Report – three simple steps to stop frauds and scams.
“Kiwis are busy, we have families to care for, jobs to do, and errands to run. Scammers know that, they rely on that, and they prey on that,” said Caplin
“If you get an unexpected message or call, pause before reacting. Ask yourself, could this be a scam?
“Don’t click on links. Instead, be proactive and search online to verify the sender’s identity. Look up the phone number, email address, or website to see if it’s legitimate, before engaging with anyone who reaches out unexpectedly.
“Taking a moment to check could be the difference between keeping your money safe and losing it to a scam,” he said. “Scammers rely on people acting quickly without thinking. They work without morals and only have to get lucky once to score.”
If something seems suspicious, report it. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.
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