Fraudsters stole €32 million from nearly 7,000 victims in Belgium last year, according to new figures published by the Economy Ministry.
The authority said it received almost 11,000 fraud reports in 2025 via its ConsumerConnect platform. Among those cases, 6,805 victims reported financial losses, amounting to an average loss of €4,686 per victim.
The increase marks a sharp rise compared with 2024, when total losses reached €12 million, with an average loss of €2,433 per victim.
According to the report, online fraud remains widespread, with scammers increasingly using digital platforms to spread illegal content, including advertisements promoting counterfeit products.
Real number of victims likely far higher
Over the past five years, the Ministry has received around 100,000 fraud reports, with nearly 40,000 victims losing a combined €112 million.
In 2026 alone, the platform has already recorded around 1,300 reports.
However, authorities believe the real number of victims is significantly higher. The Ministry estimates that only about 1% of victims of fraudulent online shops actually report the crime.
Authorities step up action
To combat the trend, the Economic Inspection Service of the Ministry has intensified targeted investigations, using new methods such as proactive detection of suspicious online adverts and websites.
When illegal content is identified, the authorities can order the removal of advertisements or block fraudulent websites.
Since January 2025, officials have blocked 1,284 fraudulent domain names, redirecting 524,203 Belgian internet users to warning pages when attempting to access the sites.
"We advise consumers to take ten seconds to think before accepting an offer that seems too good to be true or clicking on a suspicious link," said Etienne Mignolet, the Ministry's spokesperson.
