BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust

Name

BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust

Legal name

BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust

Website

https://bbbmarketplacetrust.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Arlington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Corporate Sponsorships: Funding from corporations including Amazon, Capital One, Google, Microsoft, PayPal, Walmart, Target, and FINRA Foundation through the Corporate Trust Council and sponsorship arrangements to sustain and grow programs and resources.
2. Cy Pres Awards: Court-ordered distributions of leftover funds from class action lawsuits awarded to BBB Institute for consumer education and business best practices programs aligned with settlement purposes.
3. Philanthropic Grants: Funding from JPMorganChase and other organizations supporting fraud prevention initiatives targeting vulnerable populations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust is a nonprofit educational foundation that provides free consumer protection tools, scam prevention education, and survivor support resources. Its core offerings include the BBB Scam Tracker crowdsourced reporting platform, the BBB Scam Prevention Guide, the BBB Scam Survival Toolkit, and community programs such as Fighting Financial Fraud workshops and the Military & Veterans Initiative, all delivered through a network of 89 BBBs across North America.

Product overview

BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust operates as a nonprofit educational foundation offering a suite of consumer protection programs and tools focused on fraud prevention and marketplace trust. Its core product is BBB Scam Tracker, an online reporting and search platform that enables consumers and businesses to report scams and access published scam reports. Key supporting products include the BBB Scam Prevention Guide (interactive educational content with risk calculator), the BBB Scam Survival Toolkit (trauma-informed recovery resource available in three languages), and various community programs including BBB Fighting Financial Fraud workshops, the BBB Military & Veterans Initiative, and National Scam Survivor Day. The organization also publishes annual risk reports and operates awareness campaigns like the gift card scam campaign featuring Sue. Programs are delivered through a network of 89 BBBs across North America with funding from corporate sponsors and cy pres awards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BBB Scam Tracker: Online tool that empowers consumers and businesses to report scams and search published reports to spot and avoid them.
• BBB Scam Survival Toolkit
• BBB Scam Prevention Guide
• BBB Military & Veterans Initiative
• BBB Breakthrough Accelerator
• BBB4Good
• National Scam Survivor Day
• Corporate Trust Council

Products and services

• BBB Scam Tracker Online tool that empowers consumers and businesses to report scams and search published reports to spot and avoid fraud. Enables BBB Institute to publish timely research and develop consumer education programs delivered by the network of BBBs across North America.
• BBB Scam Survival Toolkit Online resource connecting scam victims with information to restore financial, mental, and emotional health. Features trauma-informed design, recovery steps, reporting guidance, and resources to prevent repeat victimization. Available in English, Spanish, and French.
• BBB Scam Prevention Guide Interactive online guide that provides articles, quizzes, research, and an exclusive BBB Risk Calculator to help consumers and small businesses recognize and avoid online scams and fraud.
• BBB Fighting Financial Fraud Program delivering workshops and events to educate consumers about fraud prevention. Over 100,000 participants in more than 500 cities have attended.
• BBB Military & Veterans Initiative Program focused on fraud prevention education specifically for military service members, veterans, and their families, reaching over 6,000 military consumers.
• BBB Breakthrough Accelerator Program supporting small business development and marketplace trust.
• National Scam Survivor Day Annual observance on the second Thursday in May recognizing scam survivors, combating stigma, and providing resources. Includes coalition of corporate and nonprofit partners supporting survivor needs.
• 2024 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report Annual research publication analyzing scam trends, patterns, and consumer vulnerability data reported to BBB Scam Tracker.
• Gift Card Scams Awareness Campaign (Sue) Public awareness campaign featuring Sue, an animated mascot, educating consumers about gift card scam tactics and prevention, with downloadable guide and social media toolkit.

Quantifiable outcome

• Users avoided losing $43 million in 2024 through BBB Scam Tracker
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core, major and minor.

• AmazonflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerAmazon is a member of the Corporate Trust Council and partnered with BBB Institute on consumer education campaigns to help people recognize and avoid impersonation scams. Amazon and Capital One partnered to build an upgraded BBB Scam Tracker in 2022. Amazon also funded the Scam Survival Toolkit.
• Capital OneflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerCapital One is a member of the Corporate Trust Council and partnered with BBB Institute and Amazon to build an upgraded BBB Scam Tracker in 2022. Capital One also funded the Scam Survival Toolkit and hosted the National Scam Survivor Day symposium.
• Zelle (Early Warning Services, LLC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZelle partnered with BBB Institute and the Association of Military Banks of America to launch a military-focused fraud and scam education program through a year-long train-the-trainer program preparing trainers to deliver monthly in-person and virtual training to military and veteran communities.
• Association of Military Banks of America (AMBA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAMBA partnered with BBB Institute and Zelle on the military-focused fraud and scam education program. AMBA's president and CEO Steven Lepper also serves on the BBB Institute Board of Directors.
• National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNFCC is a partner in the military-focused fraud education program, providing financial counselors to receive training from BBB Institute to deliver fraud and scam education to military and veteran communities.
• Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education (AFCPE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAFCPE is a partner in the military-focused fraud education program, with Accredited Financial Counselor professionals receiving extensive fraud and scam education from BBB Institute to deliver training to military and veteran communities.
• WalmartmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerWalmart joined BBB Institute's Corporate Trust Council and partnered on a campaign reminding consumers to 'Do your part. Shop smart.' to avoid fake sites, fraudulent merchandise, and stolen packages.
• TargetmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerTarget is a Corporate Trust Council member and supported BBB Institute's gift card scam awareness campaign that used humor and empowerment to reach consumers age 65+.
• Facebook/MetaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBBB Institute and Facebook partnered on a consumer education campaign during the 2020 holiday season to spread critical information and help consumers avoid losing money to scams.
• Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGASA awarded BBB Scam Tracker as Best Scam Fighting Tool of the Year and shares scam data and research to support the global fight against fraud.
• Older Adults Technology Services from AARP (OATS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOATS is a partner organization focused on helping older adults benefit from technology, working with BBB Institute on fraud prevention for seniors.
• Aspen Institute Financial Security ProgrammajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Aspen Institute Financial Security Program is one of seven organizations receiving JPMorganChase funding for consumer awareness and real-time fraud prevention.
• Prosperity NowmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProsperity Now is a partner focused on building wealth for low- and moderate-income individuals, collaborating on financial security and fraud prevention initiatives.
• Stop Scams AlliancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStop Scams Alliance collaborates with BBB Institute on implementing different approaches to fraud prevention including AI-powered scam detection and real-time transaction blocking.
• finEQUITYmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerfinEQUITY is a partner organization working on consumer awareness and fraud prevention targeting vulnerable populations.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Consumer Action: Consumer Action is a nonprofit that delivers consumer education and complaint-resolution services to underserved communities — overlapping with BBB Institute's fraud-prevention education targeting vulnerable populations.
• Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC): ITRC is a nonprofit that provides free victim assistance, consumer education, and research on identity theft and fraud — directly comparable to BBB Institute's Scam Survival Toolkit and Scam Tracker. Both serve consumers with free resources and publish annual trend reports.
• Cybercrime Support Network: A 501(c)(3) nonprofit that links fraud and cybercrime victims to reporting, recovery, and educational resources. CSN's mission of consumer-facing fraud/cybercrime support closely mirrors BBB Institute's Scam Survival Toolkit and educational programs.
• National Consumers League / Fraud.org: NCL's Fraud.org is a national fraud-reporting and consumer-education platform that directly parallels BBB Scam Tracker. Both are nonprofit consumer-protection organizations operating reporting portals and educational campaigns on fraud prevention.
• AARP Foundation / AARP Fraud Watch Network: AARP's Fraud Watch Network is the closest nonprofit peer: it delivers free scam-prevention education, fraud-tracking, and victim-support resources targeted at older adults — a core BBB Institute segment. Both organizations operate as 501(c)(3)-style nonprofits with comparable mission and audience overlap.

Emerging players

• Privacy Rights Clearinghouse: A nonprofit consumer-information and advocacy organization focused on privacy and data-related consumer risks. It is a smaller-scale peer to BBB Institute in the consumer-education-and-advocacy space with comparable nonprofit operating model.
• Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA): GASA is an active BBB Institute partner that publishes global scam research and operates ScamAdviser.com — an overlapping consumer-facing scam-awareness platform with international scope. GASA is a peer through both mission overlap and data-sharing collaboration.

Broad incumbents

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB): CFPB enforces federal consumer financial law and accepts consumer complaints about financial products — overlapping with BBB Institute's fraud-prevention work on gift card scams, banking fraud, and P2P payment scams (Zelle).
• Federal Trade Commission (FTC) – Division of Consumer Response and Operations: The FTC operates ReportFraud.gov and IdentityTheft.gov — national government fraud-reporting platforms that compete with BBB Scam Tracker as the primary consumer-facing destination for fraud reporting. It has substantially larger resources and enforcement authority.
• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3): IC3 is the federal government's central hub for cybercrime and internet-fraud reporting and publishes the annual Internet Crime Report — a parallel data-and-research function to BBB Institute's annual Scam Tracker Risk Report.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bbb-institute-for-marketplace-trust

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust