What Holiday Scam Statistics Reveal About Business Verification
McAfee’s 2025 holiday scam statistics include an average loss of $840 per holiday scam victim. That figure describes consumer losses, but it raises an important question for businesses: How much should you trust information that has not been checked?
Small lenders, insurance agencies, lead generation companies, and financial services providers regularly receive names, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and other customer details. The information may be accurate, but it can also be outdated, entered incorrectly, or connected to someone else.
McAfee did not measure business fraud rates, application fraud, or company losses. Its research provides consumer context for a broader business lesson. That is why customer information should be checked before a business approves an application, accepts a lead, updates an account, or processes a transaction.
TL;DR
- McAfee reported an average loss of $840 per holiday scam victim in its 2025 consumer research.
- The findings describe consumer experiences, not business fraud rates or losses.
- Customer-submitted information should not automatically be treated as verified.
- Identity, contact, and compliance checks can help businesses review records before acting on them.
- Searchbug’s tools provide supporting data. They do not detect fraud, prove identity, or guarantee compliance.
What McAfee’s Holiday Scam Statistics Actually Show
McAfee’s 2025 holiday-shopping research reported that 38% of surveyed consumers believed they could identify scams, while 22% said they had previously fallen for a scam. McAfee also reported an average loss of $840 per holiday scam victim.
According to McAfee’s research methodology, the consumer survey was conducted online in August 2025. It included 8,600 adults in Australia, France, Germany, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. McAfee said the U.S. results were weighted to be nationally representative.
The $840 average applies to reported victims, not every survey participant or holiday shopper. The 22% figure describes past experience. It does not mean that 22% of respondents were scammed during the 2025 holiday season.
The findings show that confidence can be unreliable. The same principle applies when a business receives customer information. A form that looks complete has not necessarily been verified.
Why Businesses Should Review Submitted Information
A completed form can look consistent even when its details do not belong to the same person. A valid address and an active phone number show that the data exists, not who submitted it.
McAfee’s 2026 State of the Scamiversereport, published in January 2026 using research conducted in November 2025, found that more than one in three Americans did not feel confident identifying deepfake scams, while one in ten said they had experienced a voice-clone scam. The research does not measure business fraud, but it shows why familiar-looking messages and contact details may still need to be checked.
Submitted information may be inaccurate for several reasons. A customer may make a typing mistake. Contact information may be outdated. Someone may use a shared address or family phone number. A lead may have been copied from an old list. In other cases, someone may submit information intended to misrepresent who is applying.
Accurate contact data and verified identity are not the same thing. A working phone number is useful contact data, but it does not prove who controls the number. A record associated with a name and address may support a review, but it does not prove who completed the form.
A business should not base an important decision on one matching or conflicting data point. Several checks may be needed to determine whether the record is consistent or requires follow-up.
The checks used should match the purpose of the transaction. A lender reviewing an application may need a different process from an insurance agency updating a policyholder’s contact information. A lead generator checking phone records may also have different legal and operational duties from a financial institution conducting customer due diligence.
Where Verification Gaps Affect Small Businesses
Small Lenders and Financial Services Operators
Small lenders and financial services companies receive information during applications, onboarding, account updates, and transaction reviews. A record may need more attention when the submitted contact details do not align with other available information or when compliance screening produces a possible match.
When the information does not align, the team can pause the application and check the record more closely. Database results can support that review, but they do not replace required identity verification or customer due diligence.
Insurance Agents and Agencies
Insurance agents may need to review applicant and policyholder information during onboarding, renewals, and account changes. An address, email, or phone number that does not align with other available records may indicate an error or outdated information.
A conflicting detail is not automatic evidence of insurance fraud. It may simply require confirmation or updated information from the applicant.
Lead Generation Companies
Lead generators often process large numbers of records. Some may contain incomplete names, duplicate entries, disconnected phone numbers, or unreliable contact information.
Phone and contact-data checks can help identify unusable records before they enter a sales workflow. They do not confirm consent or predict whether a lead will become a customer.
An inconsistency is a reason to check the record, not automatic evidence of fraud.
When Customer Information Needs a Closer Look
Not every difference in a customer record is serious. However, some issues may justify another check before the business moves forward.
A record may need closer review when:
- The name, address, phone number, or email address does not match other available information.
- Required fields are missing or incorrectly formatted.
- The business finds the same contact information across several unrelated applications or leads in its own records.
- A submitted phone number appears inactive or its line type conflicts with the information provided.
- A customer changes important identity or contact information soon after opening an account.
- Compliance screening returns a possible watchlist, sanctions, or politically exposed person match.
- The customer cannot explain a meaningful difference in the information provided.
These issues are not automatic evidence of fraud. Typing mistakes, recent moves, shared contact information, and outdated records can also cause conflicts. The business should review the full record, request clarification when needed, and follow its established procedures.
How Searchbug Tools Can Support the Review Process
Searchbug provides identity, contact, and compliance data that businesses can compare with customer submissions. The results give teams more information to review, but the business still decides whether to approve, reject, or investigate a record. Searchbug does not determine whether an applicant is legitimate or fraudulent.
KYC and AML Screening
Searchbug’s KYC and AML solutions support screening against global watchlists, OFAC sanctions data, and politically exposed person databases.
Screening may return a possible match when people or businesses have similar names. Teams should compare the result with other identifying details and follow their established compliance procedures.
People Search API
Searchbug’s People Search API provides available name, address, email, and related identity or contact information. Restricted data is available only through separate access requirements and should not be treated as part of every search.
A team can compare an applicant’s name, address, and other available contact information with the records returned and investigate details that do not align.
A record association does not prove that the person submitting the application owns the identity or controls the contact information. Results should be considered with the organization’s other verification steps.
Phone Validator
Searchbug’s Phone Validator provides phone-related signals such as carrier, line type, activity status, and porting information. Line types can include wireless, landline, and VoIP.
If a submitted number is reported as inactive or has unexpected characteristics, the business can review the result and ask for updated contact information when needed.
Phone Validator does not confirm who owns or controls a number. It also does not confirm consent or establish the applicant’s identity. Do Not Call screening and reassigned-number checks are separate services that answer different questions.
How Small Businesses Can Verify Customer Information
Not every record requires the same level of review. Businesses can choose checks based on the transaction, the risk involved, and their own requirements:
- Collect the required information: Decide which fields are needed for the application, lead, account update, or transaction.
- Check for incomplete or incorrectly formatted data: Review names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers before running additional searches.
- Choose the appropriate checks: Use compliance screening, identity and contact research, or phone validation based on the business purpose.
- Compare the results: Review whether available records support the submitted information or show meaningful inconsistencies.
- Investigate conflicts: Request clarification or additional information when important details do not align.
- Escalate when necessary: Records with unresolved inconsistencies or possible screening matches may require additional documents, customer confirmation, or human review.
- Document the decision: Keep relevant results and the reason for any follow-up, approval, or rejection according to company policy.
- Repeat checks when information changes: Account updates, new applications, or higher-risk transactions may require another review.
Legal and compliance teams should determine which checks are required, how results should be handled, and how records should be stored.
Conclusion
Customer information should be checked before it is used for an important decision, regardless of the season.
Identity, contact, and compliance checks can help uncover missing or conflicting details before a business approves an application, accepts a lead, or processes a transaction. The business remains responsible for reviewing the results and deciding what happens next.
Create a free Searchbug API Test Account and get $10 in credits to test identity, compliance, and phone-data checks in your workflow. Teams working with larger datasets can also use Searchbug Bulk Processing for high-volume data review.
Editorial note: This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal or compliance advice. Businesses should review their verification, privacy, and compliance requirements with qualified professionals.
