# 119-s-3774: SCAM Act

119-s-3774, SCAM Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] (D-AZ); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-16).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3774
- As of: 2026-09-16
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-3774
- Congress: 119
- Title: SCAM Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-02-04
- Sponsor: Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] (D-AZ)
- Cosponsors: 9
- Policy area: Commerce
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-16

## Summary

**Stop fraud in paid online ads.** This bill would require online platforms to verify advertisers, detect impersonations, and remove deceptive paid ads quickly. - Users get a clear, conspicuous tool to report suspicious ads. Platforms must investigate reports within 72 hours, notify the reporter within 24 hours after the investigation, and remove violating ads within 24 hours of a determination. - Platforms would have to verify advertiser identity with legal names, physical locations, government IDs or business documents. They must run automated and manual fraud detection and maintain impersonation-mitigation programs. - The Federal Trade Commission would enforce the rules and state attorneys general can sue. Individuals harmed can seek injunctive relief and actual damages with a 5-year discovery window and up to triple damages for willful violations. Prevailing plaintiffs may recover costs and attorney’s fees.

## Cosponsors (9)

- Sen. Moreno, Bernie [R-OH] (R-OH), 2026-02-04T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. McCormick, David [R-PA] (R-PA), 2026-03-04T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT), 2026-03-04T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] (D-MN), 2026-03-10T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Britt, Katie Boyd [R-AL] (R-AL), 2026-03-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] (D-DE), 2026-04-13T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Graham, Lindsey [R-SC] (R-SC), 2026-04-13T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Collins, Susan M. [R-ME] (R-ME), 2026-09-14T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY] (D-NY), 2026-09-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Stricter rules on paid online ads: benefit, high. If enacted, online platforms that accept payment to show ads would have to verify advertiser identity before placing paid ads. Platforms would collect legal name, physical location, government ID or business documents, and contact information. Platforms would run impersonation detection and automat…
- FTC rulemaking and payments report: benefit, low. If enacted, the Federal Trade Commission would have to issue rules implementing this Act within one year and review them each year. The FTC would also submit a report within nine months to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the House Committee on Financial Services. Tha…
- New private suits and platform liability: mixed, medium. If enacted, any person harmed by a covered violation would be able to sue in federal court for injunctions, actual damages, restitution, and other relief. Courts could increase damages up to three times for willful or knowing violations. A plaintiff generally would have five years from discovery to…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025
- 119-s-1032: Major Richard Star Act
- 119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act
- 119-s-339: Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act
- 119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former Senator for the State of Michigan.
- 119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for the State of California.

## Sources
- [119-s-3774 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/3774)

## Related
- [119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1261)
- [119-s-1032: Major Richard Star Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1032)
- [119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1547)
- [119-s-339: Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage A…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-339)
- [119-sres-755: A resolution honoring the life of the Honorable Donald W. Riegle, Jr., former S…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-755)
- [119-sres-739: A resolution honoring the life and legacy of John Seymour, the late Senator for…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-739)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3774 (as of 2026-09-16).