How to report a scam in the USA — and try to get your money back

This is the only step with a realistic chance of recovering money, and it is time-critical. Call the fraud line printed on the back of your card, not general customer service, and say clearly that you have been defrauded.

Ask specifically for four things: an attempt to stop, recall or reverse the payment; a block on further transactions to that recipient; a review or freeze of the account if you shared credentials or gave anyone remote access to your device; and a written confirmation number for the report.

If you gave someone remote access through AnyDesk, TeamViewer or similar, say so explicitly. The bank will then treat the whole account as compromised rather than treating one transaction as the problem.

Timing matters enormously for debit cards. Under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, reporting a lost card or unauthorized transaction within two business days caps your liability at $50. Between two and sixty days it rises to $500. After sixty days from the statement, liability can be unlimited for transactions after that point. Credit cards are more protective: liability for unauthorized charges is capped at $50 by law and most issuers waive it entirely.

For a wire transfer, ask the bank to initiate a SWIFT recall immediately and then file with IC3 the same day — the FBI's Recovery Asset Team has a documented record of freezing fraudulent wires when notified quickly, generally within 72 hours.

A security freeze blocks lenders from accessing your credit report, which in practice stops new accounts being opened in your name. Since September 2018 federal law has required all three nationwide bureaus to provide freezes, unfreezes and temporary lifts free of charge.

You must do it at all three separately — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — because different lenders pull from different bureaus. Freezing one leaves the others open, and this is the most common mistake.

A freeze does not affect your credit score, does not stop you using existing accounts, and can be temporarily lifted online in minutes when you need to apply for something.

A fraud alert is the weaker alternative: it requires lenders to take extra steps to verify identity, lasts one year, and only needs to be placed with one bureau, which must notify the others. An extended alert lasting seven years is available with an identity theft report. A freeze is stronger, and there is no reason to prefer an alert unless you apply for credit frequently.

Freeze children's credit too if you have reason to be concerned. Child identity theft often goes undetected for years, and federal law requires the bureaus to provide free freezes for minors.

ReportFraud.ftc.gov is the Federal Trade Commission's reporting channel for fraud, scams and bad business practices. The FTC does not resolve individual complaints or recover money — it builds cases and shares reports with more than 2,800 law enforcement agencies through its Consumer Sentinel database. Report anyway; enforcement depends on volume.

IdentityTheft.gov is a different and more useful service if your personal information was taken. It generates a personalized recovery plan, pre-filled dispute letters, and an official FTC Identity Theft Report — a document creditors and bureaus are legally required to accept as the basis for blocking fraudulent accounts.

IC3.gov is the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, for internet-enabled crime including business email compromise, investment fraud and romance scams. Its Recovery Asset Team can sometimes freeze fraudulent wire transfers if notified quickly.

Your state attorney general is the most under-used channel. Most state AGs mediate individual consumer complaints, and a letter from a state AG's office gets responses that a consumer letter does not.

For fraud involving mail, report to the US Postal Inspection Service — a federal law enforcement agency with real investigative powers over mail fraud and mail theft.

For financial products specifically — a bank, a lender, a debt collector, a credit bureau — file with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The company must respond, usually within 15 days, and the complaint enters a public database.

Change the password on your email account first and turn on two-factor authentication. Email is the recovery route for every other account, so it is the one an attacker wants most.

Prefer an authenticator app to SMS codes. SIM-swap fraud, where an attacker ports your number to their own device, defeats text-based security across every service at once. Ask your mobile carrier to add a port-out PIN or account lock.

Check all three credit reports free at AnnualCreditReport.com — the only federally authorized source, offering free weekly reports. Look for accounts you did not open, inquiries you did not authorize and addresses you have never lived at.

If someone filed a tax return using your Social Security number, contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit and request an Identity Protection PIN, which prevents a return being filed without it.

Review bank and card statements line by line for several months, including very small transactions — fraudsters commonly test a card with a trivial charge before a large one.

The psychological impact of fraud is real, particularly with romance and investment scams where the loss includes a relationship. AARP's Fraud Watch Network runs a free helpline open to people of any age, and the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is appropriate if the loss has become overwhelming.