How and Where to Report a Scam

Everyone gets scammed at least once. Unfortunately, most people don’t know where or how to report a scam. As a result, scammers get away without so much as a slap on the wrist and continue scamming others unabated. Further, online scams are not taken seriously by authorities as the majority of them go unreported.

If you are the victim of a scam, first of all, don’t despair! You can check out our handy guide on how to handle things: I’ve Been Scammed, What Now?

Next, it is important that you take some time to report the scam not only to give yourself a chance of getting your money back, but also to prevent others from getting scammed in the future. In this article, we have put together a list of authorities dealing with cybercrime in each country. Learn about who you should contact to report a scam and how to make sure you have the best possibility to stop the scammers!

How to collect evidence of the scam

The following steps are adapted from Jennifer Mueller’s article at wikiHow:

Step 1: Write down the order of events

When you’ve been scammed, the process leading up to this point can be weeks or months, involving email communication, payment, delivery etc. It can be helpful to sit down and think through the order of what has led to the scam itself. Below is an example:

• Saw an advertisement on Instagram for shoes
• Clicked the advertisements and ordered a pair of shoes on the site
• Received a tracking email from the company
• The delivery date was missed
• Emailed the company on <date>
• Never received a reply
• Emailed twice more on <dates>
• Complained to my bank and the amount was refunded to my account <date>

It might sound like a simple exercise, but this allows you to collect as much relevant information as possible which may be useful when reporting a scam. It can also help you identify the parties involved with whom you can get in touch for a resolution.

Step 2: Keep copies of online locations and online files/documents related to the scam

This is an important step and can include the collection of the following:

• Emails
• Electronic files
• Save relevant webpages (in case the scammer shuts the site down)
• Take screenshots of online evidence that is hard to save

Step 3: Collect non-electronic evidence related to the scam

If you have purchased a product or service, often there will be evidence such as receipts, bank statements etc. that can be useful. It’s better to be meticulous when collecting this information, as even tiny details can help authorities identify and track down the scammer!

Where can I report a scammer?

That might sound simple, but with the global nature of the internet often the victims, criminals and the goods can be in three different locations. However, if you have been threatened by the scammer, our advice would be to contact local law enforcement immediately.

So, we’ve put together a handy guide on law enforcement and government agencies you can contact in order to report an online scam. We’ve ordered it by country/region to help you find the most relevant organizations.

Step-by-step guides

• Australia: How to Report a Scam to ScamWatch
• UK: How to Report a Scam to Action Fraud UK
• USA: How to Report a Scam to the FBI IC3

International/global organisations

• Econsumer.gov allows you to press charges against and help to identify international scam schemes.
• About Fraud is a global community for fraud professionals.
• Europol supports EU members in their fight against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious and organised forms of crime.
• Merchant Risk Council is a network of over 550+ companies focused on fraud prevention, payments optimization and risk management.

Argentina

• Argentine Association for the Fight Against Cybercrime (AALCC)
• Unidad Fiscal Especializada en Ciberdelincuencia (UFECI)
• Defensa de las y los consumidores

Australia

• Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
• Australia’s Cyber Security Center
• eSafety Commissioner
• Scamwatch
• Scamnet

Austria

• Bundesministerium für Inneres 

Belgium

• Local Police can help you in case you or the scam is originating from Belgium.
• Report Belgie
• Federal Public Service Economy

Brazil

• Centro de Estudos, Resposta e Tratamento de Incidentes de Segurança no Brasil
• Igarape Institute

Bulgaria 

• CyberCrime.bg is the Bulgarian authority to report Cybercrime.

Canada

• Consumer Protection Ontario will assist you on how to spot common consumer or financial scams, and how to report it as well as help if you have been scammed.
• Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is Canada's main agency collecting information and criminal intelligence on matters such as marketing fraud, advance fee fraud, Internet fraud.

China

• Chinaz
• Guanjia is free Tencent security management software. Through this website, you can as well report fraudulent websites.
• Ministry of Public Security (MPS)
• Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT)
• Internet Society of China (ISC)
• LieWang Platform

Croatia

• Ministry of Interior is the authority to talk to in case of Croatian-based scams or fraud.

Cyprus 

• The Cypriot Police – Online form / Tel: +357 22808200, +357 22808461 - is the authority to communicate with in case of Cypriot-based online scam or fraudulent website.

Czech Republic

• Police website if you face a Czech scam scheme or website.

Denmark 

• The Danish authority to talk to in case of scam is the Danish police, here is the Police website.

Estonia 

• Contact of the Estonian Police in case of scam or fraud.

Finland 

• Police website – Finnish and English

France 

• Internet-signalement.gouv.fr is the French government website where to report a scam in France.
• Authorite des Marches Financiers (AFM)
• Ministry of Economic Affairs & Finance - SignalConso
• Ministere of the Interior - Internet Signalement
• Signal Arnaques

Germany

• Bundeskriminalamt - SO-4
• Zentralen Anspechstellen Cybercrime

Greece

• Police – Cyber Crime Division is the police branch to communicate with in case of Greek-based scam or fraud.

Hungary 

• In case of Hungarian-based scam or fraudulent website, you can contact the Hungarian Police through their website. 

India

• India has a Cybercrime Reporting Portal you can refer to in case of Indian-based scam.

Ireland 

• If you are facing a scam you think is Irish-based, you can take contact with the Irish National police – English and Gaeilge.
• FraudSmart is a fraud awareness initiative aiming at raising consumer and business awareness of the latest financial fraud activity and trends.

Italy

• You can communicate with the Italian Police in case of Italian scam or fraud: Commissariato di P.S.

Japan

• @Police
• Consumer Affair Agency

Latvia

• Report Cybercrime (email link)
• Report Spam (email link) 

Lithuania 

• The Lithuanian Police website is accessible in several languages – Lithuanian, Polish, Russian and English – in case of Lithuanian-based scam.

Luxembourg

• If you are facing a scam or fraud you think is based in Luxembourg, you can take contacts with the Police through their website.

Malta 

• Malta has a Government website you can communicate with in Malti and English in case of scam or fraud based in Malta.

Mexico

• Condusef
• PROFECO
• Asociación de Internet MX

The Netherlands 

• The Dutch authority to talk to in case of fraud is the Police through their website – Dutch and English.
• Fraudehelpdesk (consumers) is a national source of information and an effective weapon against fraudsters for consumers.
• Fraudeinfodesk (businesses) the same service is here for businesses.

New Zealand

• The New Zealand Consumer Protection association is accessible hereby.
• Netsafe is New Zealand's independent, non-profit online safety organisation to communicate with in case of Scams, Bullying, Abuse.
• CERT NZ takes care of responding to cybersecurity threats in New Zealand.

Nigeria

• Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
• National Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT)

Poland

• You can access the Polish Police website in case of Polish-based scam or fraud.
• Here is the link to the Prosecutor’s office (Prokuratura Krajowa).

Portugal 

• The Portuguese Police force is reachable through this website in case of Portuguese originating scam or online fraud.

Romania 

• You can communicate with the Romanian Police website through its online form in case of online fraud involving Romania.

Saudi Arabia

• Consumer Protection Association Saudi Arabia

Singapore

• ScamAlert is a non-profit organisation committed to promoting public awareness and concern about crime.

Spain 

• You can contact the Policia Nacional in case of scam, fraud or crime involving Spain.

Slovakia 

• The Slovakian Ministry of Interior can be contacted if you are dealing with a scam, fraud or crime.

Slovenia 

• The Slovenian Police can be contacted through this website in case of scam or fraud from Slovenia.

Sweden 

• The Swedish Police force can be contacted through this website.

United Kingdom

• Action Fraud is the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime.
• Citizens Advice Consumer Service give people the knowledge and confidence they need to find their way forward, whoever they are and whatever their problem.
• Financial Fraud Action (FFA) is responsible for leading the collective fight against financial fraud on behalf of the UK payments industry.
• Get Safe Online is the UK's leading source of unbiased, factual and easy information on online safety.

United States

The United States Department of Justice has stated the following when it comes to different kinds of online crimes/scams (as of publication).

Computer Intrusion (i.e. hacking)

• FBI local office
• U.S. Secret Service
• Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)

Password trafficking

• FBI local office
• U.S. Secret Service
• Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)

Child Pornography or Exploitation

• FBI local office
• If imported, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
• Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)

Internet fraud and SPAM

• FBI local office
• U.S. Secret Service
• Federal Trade Commission (online complaint)
• if securities fraud or investment-related SPAM e-mails, Securities and Exchange Commission (online complaint)
• Internet Crime Complaint Center

Internet harassment

• FBI local office

Other resources include:

• US-CERT – Reporting is also available via the hotline (1-888-282-0870). Phishing attempts can be directed to phishing-report@us-cert.gov.
• Anti Fraud News: news site about frauds.
• BBB Scam Tracker: huge list of scam reports. 
• Complaint List: complaints forum.
• Complaints Board: leave a complaint.
• Federal Trade Commission (government): learn about recent scams and how to recognize the warning signs.  
• Online Threats Alerts: An anti-cybercrime community alerting the public to online scams, fraud, and other web threats.
• Scam: Scam reporting forum.
• Stop 419 Scams: forum on 419 Scams and Scammers
  Exposing 419 Scams & Scammers
• Stop Scams (government):  
• MyWOT: Safe Web Search & Browsing
• National Crime Prevention Counsil (NCPC): focusses on (children) education around scam (prevention).
• Rip and Scam: large list of different forms of scams.
• Scam Detector: lists 1.000 different scams.
• Scam Identifier: check a website if it is a scam.
• Scam Rate: check a website if it is a scam.
• Top Reviews Site: lists scams.
• Spam laws  "dedicated to providing accurate and up-to-date information on issues affecting Internet security".
• Slam the Online Scam: Fight Back Against Online Scams, Hackers and Cyber Attackers

Are there organisations or contacts that are missing from this list? Please contact us!

Apart from contact authorities to report the scam, there are steps you can take yourself in order to get your money back from scammers. Know more by visiting our section How to Get Your Money Back From a Scam.