I Think I've Already Been Scammed

If You Sent Money — Do This First

Speed matters more here than anything else on this page. Contact whoever you sent the money through, tell them it was a scam, and ask if the payment can be stopped or reversed. Exactly who to call depends on how you paid:

• Bank transfer or wire: Call your bank directly, using the number on your card or bank statement — not any number the scammer gave you. Tell them it was fraud and ask if the transfer can be recalled.
• Credit or debit card: Call the number on the back of the card. Tell them it was fraud and ask about disputing the charge.
• A payment app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App, PayPal, or similar): Contact the app's support and your bank — both. Some of these apps have fraud reporting built directly into the app itself.
• Gift card: Contact the company that issued the card — Amazon, Apple, Target, whichever store's name is on it — right away, and tell them the balance was part of a scam. Acting quickly sometimes lets them freeze what's left on the card.
• A wire transfer service like Western Union or MoneyGram: Contact them directly and ask about canceling the transfer.
• Cryptocurrency: Contact the exchange or wallet app you used. Crypto payments are usually very hard to reverse once sent, but it's still worth asking.

If you're not sure which of these applies, start with your bank or card company — they can often point you toward the right next call.

If You Shared a Password, PIN, or Account Number

This is the second priority, right after the money.

Change the password on that account now, and on anything else using the same password. Turn on two-factor authentication if it isn't on already. If what you shared was a Social Security number, a bank account number, or other personal identification, that's a separate kind of exposure — a scammer can use it well after today. IdentityTheft.gov, run by the FTC, walks through a personal recovery plan built around exactly what was shared.

Report It

This matters, but it's not as time-sensitive as the two sections above — reporting can happen today or tomorrow, after the calls that actually protect your money and accounts. If you only do one of these, start with the FTC — it's the general starting point and takes a few minutes.

• FTC — Federal Trade Commission — The general starting point for reporting almost any scam — money lost, an attempt that didn't work, or anything in between.
• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) — For scams that happened online or by email — this goes to federal law enforcement, not just a consumer database.
• IdentityTheft.gov (run by the FTC) — If a Social Security number, bank login, or other personal information was shared — walks through a personal recovery plan step by step.
• Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General — Specifically if the scam involved someone claiming to be from Social Security.

A local police report is also worth doing, especially if your bank or insurance later asks for one.

This Happens to People Every Day

Scammers do this for a living. Fooling someone whose whole day involves talking to strangers, sounding official, and creating urgency isn't a sign of anything wrong with you — it's a sign the person on the other end was good at their one job. Reporting it, even if part of you would rather not talk about it, is what actually makes it harder for the same scam to work on the next person.