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ACTIVE CRISIS

Where do I report a scam?

If money has left your account, call your bank first. Use the number on the back of your card or in your banking app, not a number from the scammer's message. Then report the scam to the authority for your country, below. It's not your fault, and reporting it helps stop the same people from reaching someone else.

Do this first

  • Lost money? Call your bank, card issuer or payment app now
  • Keep the evidence: don't delete messages, take screenshots
  • Then report to the national service for where you live
01

Step 1: Call the company you paid through

Speed matters more than anything else on this page. The US Federal Trade Commission's advice for every payment method is the same two steps: report it to the company you used to send the money, and ask them to reverse the payment and refund it.

  • Bank transfer or Zelle: your bank or credit union.
  • Payment app (Venmo, Cash App, PayPal): the app itself.
  • Wire transfer company (Western Union, MoneyGram): the wire company. Tell them a scammer tricked you into sending money.
  • Credit or debit card: the card issuer, using the number on the back of the card.

In the UK, you can call 159. It connects you safely and directly to your bank. Stop Scams UK says 159 works for more than 99% of the UK's retail bank current accounts and "cannot be spoofed or impersonated".

More on your chances of getting money back: Can I get my money back after being scammed?

02

Step 2: Which authority do I report it to?

United States

  • ReportFraud.ftc.gov, the Federal Trade Commission's reporting site for scams of any kind. The FTC uses reports to build cases against scammers, spot trends and educate the public.
  • ic3.gov, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, the central hub for reporting cyber-enabled crime.
  • Sent a bank transfer or wire? Report to ic3.gov quickly, whatever the amount. The FBI's advice is to call your bank and ask for a recall of the funds, then file at ic3.gov with the full transaction details. In 2025, the IC3's Recovery Asset Team worked on 3,900 incidents and helped freeze $679 million USD of $1.16 billion USD that scammers tried to move (a 58% success rate). The FBI's words: "time is of the essence".
  • IdentityTheft.gov: if a scammer has your personal information, such as your Social Security number. It gives you a customized recovery plan.
  • Scam texts: copy the message and forward it to 7726 (SPAM). It helps your wireless provider spot and block similar messages.

United Kingdom

  • England, Wales and Northern Ireland: report to Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040. Report Fraud has been the national reporting service since 4 December 2025.
  • Scotland: report to Police Scotland on 101.
  • Suspicious emails: forward them to report@phishing.gov.uk (the National Cyber Security Centre).
  • Scam texts: forward them free to 7726.
  • Scam websites: report them with the NCSC's scam website form.

Canada

  • Contact your local police first if you lost money or information.
  • Report online at reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca, whether you are a victim or a witness. You can report anonymously.
  • Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre by phone: 1-888-495-8501 (toll free), Monday to Friday, 10 am to 4:45 pm Eastern time.

Australia

  • Call your bank or card provider now if you lost money or banking details, and ask them to stop any transactions.
  • Scamwatch: report the scam at scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam. With your consent, Scamwatch uses reports to get scam websites, ads and contact details removed.
  • Police report for cybercrime (money or personal information stolen, or extortion): through the Australian Cyber Security Centre's reporting page. The Australian Cyber Security Hotline is 1300 292 371.
  • Identity stolen? IDCARE, Australia's national identity and cyber support service: 1800 595 160.
  • In immediate danger: call 000.

Denmark

  • Report it to the police at politi.dk/anmeld-kriminalitet, under "Digital kriminalitet". It covers phone scams, card misuse, investment and dating scams, and scams when buying or selling online.
  • By phone: the police service line is 114. In an emergency, call 112.
  • Your bank: log in with MitID and contact your bank's fraud team.

Somewhere else

Report it to your national police and to your bank. If you are not sure which service handles fraud where you live, your bank's fraud team can usually tell you.

03

Step 3: Report it where it happened

  • Social media, marketplace or dating app: use the platform's own "report" button on the profile or listing.
  • Email: use your email app's "report phishing" or "report spam" option. Step by step: How to report a phishing email.
  • Text message: How to report a scam text message.
  • A company was impersonated: most large companies have a page for reporting fakes. The company pages on this site list the official ones.
04

What should I have ready when I report?

You don't need all of this to report. Report with what you have.

  • What happened, in your own words, with dates and times.
  • How you paid, how much, and any transaction or reference numbers.
  • The scammer's phone numbers, email addresses, usernames, website addresses or wallet addresses.
  • Screenshots of the messages, profiles and payment receipts.
05

What happens after you report?

Be prepared for this: most reports do not lead to a personal follow-up, and reporting on its own rarely brings the money back. That's why calling your bank comes first.

Reports still matter. The FTC says it uses them to build cases against scammers and spot trends. Canada's Anti-Fraud Centre explains: "It's the role of your local police to investigate." It adds that the centre keeps a central record to help those investigations.

06

Be careful of anyone who offers to get your money back. People who report a scam are often targeted again. In 2025, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center received 10,516 complaints about recovery scams, with $1.4 billion USD in reported losses, and saw more complaints about scammers posing as government officials and recovery firms.

The FTC is clear about its own name: it "will never threaten you, say you must transfer your money to 'protect it,' or tell you to withdraw cash or buy gold and give it to someone."

Official reporting services are free. If someone asks for a fee to "process" your report or recover your money, stop contact.

Related situations

Sources

This page was last reviewed: November 2, 2026.
Drafted with AI assistance. Every figure and link on this page was checked against the official source cited for it. Not yet reviewed by a human editor.