Phishing Emails Sent Per Second: Global Statistics and Trends
The inbox you never wanted: who's sending 39,000 fraudulent emails right now
“Over 39,000 phishing emails are sent per second globally.”
Source: APWG and security observatories; converted to per-second rate. View on dashboard →
Somewhere right now, someone just clicked a link they shouldn't have. Not because they're careless – because the email looked completely real. Phishing is the oldest trick in the digital book and still the most effective. Groups like the Anti-Phishing Working Group track billions of fraudulent messages every year – stuff designed to steal your password, your payment details, your identity.
The number above is how many are going out right now. Not today. Right now. Campaigns run around the clock; volumes spike around tax season, holidays, big news events. By the time you finish reading this, millions more have been sent.
Filters help. Training helps. Multi-factor authentication helps. But nothing makes the scale feel real quite like watching the counter.
Key figures
| Time unit | Approx. rate |
|---|---|
| Per second | 39,000+ emails |
| Per minute | ~2.36 million |
| Per day | ~3.4 billion |
| Per year | ~1.2 trillion+ (based on APWG estimates) |
Phishing isn't new, but the scale keeps climbing. Automation and AI-written copy have pushed annual volumes into the trillions; the numbers below reflect how fast the curve has risen.
Historical context (reported phishing – APWG and industry estimates)
| Year | Estimated annual volume | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ~1 trillion+ messages | — |
| 2022 | ~1.1 trillion+ | Rising |
| 2023–2024 | ~1.2 trillion+ | Automation, AI-driven copy |
What are phishing emails?
Fraudulent messages that trick people into giving up passwords, payment details, or other sensitive data. They often impersonate trusted brands and are a leading cause of data breaches. Individuals and businesses everywhere are targeted.
How the number is calculated
Exact calculation. Security observatories such as the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) publish estimates of how many phishing emails and messages are sent globally per year (in the billions). We take that annual total and divide it by the number of seconds in a year (31,536,000) to get the average number of phishing emails sent per second. The counter then multiplies this rate by the seconds elapsed since midnight (or since 1 January) to show “so far today” or “this year”.
Documents used for this calculation: APWG Phishing Activity Trends Reports. Full methodology and uncertainties: methodology page.
Phishing statistics
- Phishing emails sent per second: 39,000+
- Phishing emails sent per minute: ~2.36 million
- Phishing emails sent per day: ~3.4 billion
Billions of phishing emails are sent worldwide every day; it remains one of the most common attack vectors. Based on global estimates, converted to per-second, per-minute, and per-day rates.
Why phishing attacks keep growing
Automation and AI-generated copy make large campaigns easy to run. Credential stuffing reuses leaked passwords at scale. Low cost, high reach—so phishing stays a top threat. Filters, training, and multi-factor authentication still matter.
FAQ
- How many phishing emails are sent per day?
- Based on current global estimates, billions of phishing emails are sent every day—on the order of 3.4 billion or more. The per-second rate (over 39,000) converts to roughly 2.36 million per minute and over 3 billion per day.
- Why are phishing emails increasing?
- Phishing keeps growing due to automation, AI-generated copy, credential-stuffing campaigns, and the low cost of running large-scale campaigns. Tax season, holidays, and major events also drive spikes in volume.
- How are phishing statistics calculated?
- Organizations like the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) track annual totals of fraudulent emails and messages. We convert those yearly figures into per-second, per-minute, and per-day rates. See our methodology page for full details.
- Who is affected by phishing?
- Individuals, businesses, and organizations in every region are targeted. Phishing is one of the top causes of data breaches and financial loss; everyone with an inbox or messaging account is potentially affected.
Sources
Documents used for this statistic: APWG Phishing Activity Trends Reports. Full methodology and uncertainties: methodology page.
Explore more live digital statistics: deepfakes, AI hallucinations, and the AnythingCounter dashboard. You can also convert and back up your files with Anything Converter.