Fraud, Scams, and Ransomware Impose a $131 Billion "Hidden Tax" on America's Small Businesses

ICYMI: In Case You Missed It

As we celebrate National Small Business Week, PPSI's first-of-its-kind national survey, expert briefing, and op-ed in Fortune highlight an urgent and underreported threat to Main Street.

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As the country celebrates National Small Business Week (May 3–9, 2026), the Public Private Strategies Institute (PPSI) is sharing recent body of  work that puts a hard number on a massive threat to America's entrepreneurs: fraud, scams, and ransomware.

A first-of-its-kind national survey, expert briefing, and firsthand account published in Fortune reveal the size, scope and real-world consequences to businesses and the US economy.

The Survey: $131B Hidden Tax on Small Business  

The survey of more than 500 small business owners conducted by Morning Consult for PPSI, is the first to quantify the financial toll of fraud, scams, and ransomware on the small businesses and the economy.

"When nearly three in four small businesses experience fraud or ransomware in a single year, this is no longer an isolated risk. It has become a routine cost of doing business."
— Tammy Halevy, Executive Director, Reimagine Main Street, a project of PPSI

Findings include:

• Nearly three in four (72%) small businesses were hit by fraud, scams, or ransomware last year.
• Losses last year reached at least $131 billion.
• Average losses range from nearly $60,000 for payment fraud to more than $90,000 for email compromise.
• Fraud doesn't just drain revenue, it slows growth: 43% of affected businesses say it makes it harder to accept payments, 40% say it hurts customer acquisition, and 39% say it makes it more difficult to innovate or develop new products.
• 71% of small business owners expect AI to make fraud more prevalent. Among businesses already targeted, 76% say AI was used in the attack.
• The most effective tools — multi-factor authentication, cyber insurance, regular security audits — are also the least widely adopted.
• Small businesses see fraud prevention as a shared responsibility: A majority say business owners themselves (51%), payment platforms (51%), and financial institutions (50%) are "very responsible" for preventing and protecting against fraud.

"This survey makes one thing clear: small businesses are doing their part, but as AI and other disruptive technologies emerge they cannot fight this battle alone. Reducing this hidden tax on entrepreneurship will require stronger coordination between the private sector and policymakers. When small businesses are protected, they can focus on what they do best — creating jobs, serving customers, and driving growth."
—  Rhett Buttle, President, Public Private Strategies Institute.

Read the full report: ppsi.org/insights/fraud-scams-ransomware-survey

The Briefing: Experts Weigh In on What the Data Means

Following the survey's release, PPSI convened an expert briefing bringing together leaders from across the policy, technology, and nonprofit sectors alongside a small business owner with firsthand experience to examine the findings and chart a path forward.

Participants included:

• Walt Rowen, CEO, Susquehanna Glass Company — whose business survived a devastating ransomware attack two weeks before Christmas
• Kate Griffin, Director of the National Task Force on Fraud and Scams, Aspen Institute
• Cynthia Deitle, Director, Meta Public Policy and former FBI special agent

Themes from the discussion:

• Fraud is organized, transnational crime demanding a systemic response.
• The tools to fight back work. The problem is a preparedness gap where small businesses aren't using them at scale.
• Fear and shame keep many victims from reporting even though reporting leads to resolution in the vast majority of cases.
• There is real policy momentum, including a March 2026 executive order directing federal agencies to develop a coordinated cybercrime action plan.

Watch the full briefing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkreFMsAb-k&t=3s 

In the Press: Walt Rowen's Story in Fortune
In a widely read op-ed published in Fortune, Susquehanna Glass Company CEO Walt Rowen put a human face on the data — describing in vivid detail how a million-dollar ransom demand and $100,000 in cleanup costs nearly ended a 116-year-old family business during its busiest season of the year.

"While being a responsible, tax-paying citizen, these costs resulting from the ransomware attack essentially became a new, unsolicited tax — something I won't forget as we pay our annual taxes this year."
— Walter Rowen, Fortune, April 16, 2026

Rowen's experience reinforces the survey's central finding: no business is too small, too established, or too careful to be targeted. His advice to other owners to get cyber insurance, build a trusted IT relationship, and maintain fully isolated backups reflects the survey's finding that the tools which work are the ones least often used.

Read the op-ed in Fortune: fortune.com

About the Public Private Strategies Institute

The Public Private Strategies Institute (PPSI) is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to bridging the public and private sectors, with a special focus on amplifying the voices of small businesses in policy conversations at the local, state, and federal level. Through research, insights, and engagement, PPSI works to ensure that small business owners — and the communities they serve — are represented where decisions are made.

Learn more: ppsi.org

SOURCE Public Private Strategies Institute