Report a scam
Report a scam — wherever you are
If you’ve been scammed, speed matters more than anything. Acting in the first hours gives the best chance of freezing the money before it’s gone.
Do these first — in order
- 1Contact your bank, card issuer, or payment app immediately and ask them to block or reverse the transaction.
- 2Save the evidence — screenshots, phone numbers, transaction IDs, and any messages.
- 3Report to your national authority (below). Reporting fast is what makes freezing and recovery possible.
Where to report — wherever you are
First, contact your bank or payment provider immediately to try to freeze the transaction — speed is everything. Reporting fast gives the best chance of freezing the money before it’s gone. Then file with your national authority:
India — Helpline 1930 · cybercrime.gov.in
Report in the first hours (the “golden hour”) to freeze funds. Run by I4C, Ministry of Home Affairs.
United States — FTC · FBI IC3
reportfraud.ftc.gov and ic3.gov.
United Kingdom — Action Fraud
actionfraud.police.uk · 0300 123 2040 (in Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101).
Australia — Scamwatch (National Anti-Scam Centre)
scamwatch.gov.au.
Canada — Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca · 1-888-495-8501.
Anywhere else: contact your bank and local police right away, and search “report a scam” plus your country. For cross-border cases, econsumer.gov collects international complaints. Beware anyone who later offers to “recover” your money for an upfront fee — that is a second scam.
We can’t recover funds or give individual legal advice — but reporting starts the official process and helps investigators stop the people behind the scam. Not sure what you’re dealing with? Read our scam guides.