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To report a crypto scam in the United States, stop sending money, contact the exchange and bank or payment provider involved through independently verified official channels, preserve evidence, and file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). You can also report it to the FTC; an investment or securities offering may warrant an SEC complaint. Report promptly, even if you have not confirmed a loss—but understand that a complaint does not guarantee a freeze, investigation, or reimbursement.
What should you do first after a crypto scam?
Act in this order: stop the payments, secure any possibly compromised accounts, contact the institutions involved, preserve records, and report the incident. Do not send additional crypto, taxes, fees, or “verification” payments to get money back or unlock an account.
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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11- Stop contact and payments. Do not continue a conversation with the suspected scammer or follow instructions to make another payment. The FBI advises victims not to tell suspected criminals that law enforcement is involved, because doing so could compromise an investigation.
- Secure potentially compromised accounts. If you shared credentials or suspect someone accessed an account, contact the exchange through its official app or website. From a trusted device, change the password, revoke suspicious sessions or API permissions if the account lets you, and enable stronger authentication. Do not use a link or phone number supplied by an unsolicited caller or message claiming to represent the exchange; look up the institution’s official contact route independently. The FBI has warned about scammers impersonating cryptocurrency exchanges.
- Contact the exchange and the bank or payment provider. Report the incident promptly to each institution that handled a part of the transaction. Ask them to secure relevant accounts, review any pending activity, and preserve records.
- File reports with relevant authorities. For an internet-enabled scam in the United States, submit a complaint to IC3. FTC ReportFraud is another consumer reporting route. If the matter concerns an investment or securities offering, FTC guidance also points to the SEC’s TCR system. State financial regulators and local police may provide additional reporting options.
These actions serve different purposes. Contacting a bank or exchange is an urgent request for account help and review; filing a government complaint creates a report for law-enforcement or consumer-protection purposes. One does not necessarily replace the others.
If you are unsure whether the incident “counts” as a scam, report what happened without making claims you cannot support. An attempted scam, a suspicious request for crypto, or a conversation that did not lead to a confirmed loss can still be reported to IC3. If you did send money, write down what you know now rather than waiting until you have identified every wallet or institution.
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How do you report a scam to a crypto exchange?
Use the exchange’s official support channel and report the scam as soon as you can. The exchange can review activity and records within its own systems, but a confirmed blockchain transfer generally cannot simply be reversed by the exchange.
Open the exchange’s official app or type its known website address yourself, then find its support or fraud-reporting route. If you cannot sign in, use the official account-recovery or support path rather than a link from a message. Tell support that you are reporting a suspected scam and ask it to:
- Secure your account and review suspicious logins, sessions, API permissions, or linked activity, if applicable.
- Check whether any transaction is still pending and explain what, if anything, can be done before it completes.
- Preserve records relevant to the account and transaction, and explain whether the exchange has an internal fraud process.
- Record the incident and provide a case or reference number, if its process supplies one.
Give the exchange factual details: the asset, amount, date and time, transaction hash or ID, sending and receiving addresses, and blockchain or network if known. Include your account identifier and the names of any bank or other exchange involved. If a scammer impersonated the exchange or its staff, include that fact and preserve the messages, phone numbers, email addresses, and web domains.
Be precise about what happened. A crypto transfer you authorized after being deceived is not the same event as an account takeover or a transaction you did not authorize. Describe the instructions you received and what you personally approved; let the institution assess the transaction under its procedures. Do not assume that reporting it means a completed transfer can be reversed or the recipient’s funds are under the exchange’s control.
It can help to separate the events into stages when you explain them: how the person first contacted you; what they claimed or promised; whether you bought crypto through an exchange; how the crypto left the account; and any later request for more money. This makes clear which actions occurred on the exchange and which happened elsewhere. If you are reporting an impersonation, state that explicitly—for example, distinguish a real exchange account or message from a person who merely claimed to work for that company. Do not try to verify the person by replying to them or by calling a number they gave you.
How do you report the payment to your bank?
Call your bank or payment provider using the number in its official app, on your card, or on its official website. Explain whether someone made an unauthorized transaction or whether you initiated a payment after being deceived; the distinction can affect how the institution reviews the incident.
Ask the bank to secure the account, review linked transfers and card activity, document the incident, and explain any available dispute or fraud-reporting process for the payment method involved. Report promptly, but do not assume reimbursement or reversal is guaranteed. Available responses depend on the payment method and circumstances.
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If a bank transfer funded a purchase of cryptocurrency, report that bank payment separately from the later crypto transfer. Give the bank the date, amount, recipient or destination details shown in your records, and the exchange involved. Then separately report the crypto transaction to the exchange and include the relevant transaction hash, wallet addresses, asset, and network when available. The bank reviews the fiat payment or account activity; the exchange reviews records it controls. Neither report automatically resolves the other part of the transaction.
When talking to the bank, describe the payment path in plain terms: which account or card was used, when the payment happened, what recipient or exchange appears on the transaction record, and whether you approved it yourself. If you do not know whether a payment was unauthorized, say what you observed—for instance, that you did not make it or that you made it after someone gave you instructions. Avoid labeling an event as account theft unless that is what you believe happened; the bank needs an accurate account of your actions and the activity you noticed.
Keep the bank’s response distinct from the exchange’s. A bank may be able to review the payment that funded a crypto purchase or activity on a compromised account, while the exchange may review a purchase, withdrawal, or account access within its own records. Ask each institution what it can review, what records it needs, and whether it has documented the report. A response from one does not establish that the other can reverse the next step in the payment chain.
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For an online or internet-enabled crypto scam, submit an IC3 complaint even if you have not confirmed that money was lost. The FBI specifically encourages the public to file even when financial loss did not occur. The IC3 cryptocurrency guidance explains the relevant reporting route.
| Reporting route | What it can do | When it is relevant |
|---|---|---|
| Crypto exchange | Review its own account and transaction records; secure an account or review a pending transaction under its procedures. | An exchange account, purchase, withdrawal, or exchange impersonation was involved. |
| Bank or payment provider | Review a bank payment, card activity, or potentially compromised account under its procedures. | A bank transfer, card, or other payment method funded the purchase, or account activity may have been unauthorized. |
| FBI IC3 | Collects reports about internet-enabled crime for law-enforcement purposes. | A crypto scam involved online contact or activity. File even if no financial loss occurred. |
| FTC ReportFraud | Receives consumer scam reports. | You want to report a consumer scam to the FTC as well as contacting the institutions involved. |
| SEC TCR | Receives tips, complaints, and referrals related to securities matters. | The alleged scam involved an investment or securities offering; FTC guidance lists this route for that context. |
| State financial regulator or local police | May provide additional state or local reporting routes. | You want to report through the relevant state or local channel in addition to federal reporting. |
Use the FBI’s cryptocurrency investment-fraud guidance for victim-reporting advice, and the FTC’s cryptocurrency and scam guidance for consumer reporting options. A complaint is a record of what you report; it is not a promise that a specific agency will take on the case or recover funds.
Choose the reporting route based on what happened, not on an assumption that one portal handles every part of the incident. IC3 is the FBI’s route for internet-enabled crime reports. The FTC provides a consumer scam reporting option. SEC TCR is pertinent when the alleged conduct concerns an investment or securities offering, rather than every purchase or transfer involving cryptocurrency. A financial institution’s fraud process is separate: it addresses that institution’s account or payment records, not the broader law-enforcement report.
State regulators and local police can be additional channels, depending on your location and circumstances. They do not replace reporting to the institutions that handled your money or submitting an IC3 complaint for an internet-enabled scam. If you use more than one channel, keep the dates and description consistent, and note which report relates to the bank payment, which to the crypto transaction, and which to the alleged scam conduct.
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What information should you include in a report?
A clear timeline and transaction identifiers make it easier for an institution or investigator to understand what happened. Preserve original records where possible, and do not revisit a suspicious link just to capture evidence.
- Transaction details: crypto asset and amount; date and time, including time zone if known; sending and receiving wallet addresses; transaction ID or hash; and blockchain or network.
- Institutions and receipts: names of each exchange and financial institution involved, account identifiers, transaction receipts, and details showing how a bank or card payment funded a crypto purchase.
- People and contact details: names, aliases, usernames, phone numbers, email addresses, and claimed organizations or affiliations used by the person who contacted you.
- Communications: messages, emails, call logs, screenshots, website domains, app names, and links. Save what you already have without reopening suspicious sites or interacting with the sender.
- Timeline and instructions: where contact began, what the person promised or told you to do, and when each payment or transfer occurred. Distinguish what you authorized from activity you did not authorize.
- Follow-on contact: details of anyone later claiming to be an investigator, lawyer, or recovery company, especially if they demand a fee.
The FBI emphasizes transaction details and asks for contact identifiers, receiving institution information, exchange names, and a description of the scam timeline. If you do not have every transaction detail, do not wait to report: IC3 says to submit a complaint even when transaction information is unavailable. You can provide the facts you do have and identify what is missing.
Before filing, organize your records in a short chronological list. For each contact or transfer, note the date and approximate time, what happened, the amount or asset involved, and where the supporting record is saved. If you are not sure of a time zone or exact time, say so rather than guessing. Mark estimates as estimates and distinguish a wallet address or account identifier you copied from one you inferred.
A concise report can follow this pattern:
- How contact began: name or username used, channel, date, and any claimed business or affiliation.
- What was represented or requested: the promise, story, or instruction that led to the payment, using the person’s actual words where you have a message.
- What you did: the bank or card payment, exchange purchase, transfer, or account action, with dates, amounts, and identifiers available.
- What happened afterward: any failed withdrawal, demand for another payment, account access concern, or new contact claiming to recover funds.
- What you can provide: receipts, messages, call logs, domains, wallet details, and the names of institutions already contacted.
This is a way to arrange facts, not a substitute for any institution’s form or requested fields. Do not send passwords, authentication codes, or account recovery phrases in a report or to a caller claiming to help. If you discover a missing transaction hash later, you can refer to the earlier report or case number when asking the relevant institution how to add information.
Can an exchange or bank reverse a crypto scam payment?
There is no universal promise of reversal or reimbursement. The outcome depends on what happened, the payment method, the institution’s procedures, and whether an account or funds remain within its control.
A confirmed crypto transfer recorded on a blockchain is different from a pending exchange transaction or a bank payment used to buy crypto. Ask the exchange whether a transaction is still pending and what its internal process permits; ask the bank or provider how it handles the specific fiat payment or account activity. A bank may assess an unauthorized transfer differently from a payment the customer initiated after being deceived. The available guidance does not establish a universal entitlement to reimbursement for a scam-induced payment.
The FBI says exchanges freeze accounts based on their own internal processes or legal process. Filing an IC3 complaint does not itself issue a seizure order, direct an exchange to freeze an account, or guarantee that law enforcement will recover funds. Report quickly because delay can limit practical options, but keep expectations realistic.
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When asking about recovery, focus on specific questions the institution can answer: Is the transaction still pending? Is the account secured? What records can the institution review? Has it documented the report, and is there a reference number? Avoid framing a request as a demand for a guaranteed reversal. A quick report is sensible because an institution may have fewer practical options as events progress, but urgency does not change the fact that each payment method and institution is handled according to its own process.
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Be wary of anyone who promises guaranteed recovery, demands an upfront fee, or asks for credentials or additional personal and financial information. The FBI warns that recovery fraudsters may falsely claim ties to law enforcement or legal services; law enforcement does not charge victims a fee to investigate.
Do not treat a person’s knowledge of your loss as proof that they are legitimate. Verify any claimed institutional affiliation using independently found official contact details, not a number or link the person provides. Do not pay a supposed investigator or recovery service to access funds, and report suspicious recovery contact as a separate incident. The FBI’s warning about companies falsely claiming they can recover cryptocurrency losses describes this follow-on risk.
Someone may contact you after the original scam and claim to have found your funds, work with an agency, or have a legal route to retrieve them. Treat the new approach as a separate event, even if the caller knows the amount you lost or refers to your earlier report. Preserve the new messages and fee request, do not share credentials or additional personal and financial information, and report the contact through the official routes. A private recovery business cannot issue a seizure order, and no fee payment should be treated as proof that recovery is possible.
What should you expect after filing?
Keep copies of submitted reports, confirmation numbers, case references, and any replies from institutions. If an agency or institution asks for more information, respond through its verified channel and give consistent dates, amounts, and transaction identifiers. A report can help create an investigative record and contribute information about a broader pattern, but it is not the same as a case assignment or a guarantee of action.
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Filing complaints with multiple organizations may mean maintaining more than one confirmation or reference number. Store those details alongside your timeline so you can identify which institution or agency each belongs to. If an agency does not contact you, that silence does not establish that a report was ignored or that a recovery is underway; the complaint itself is not a promise of follow-up, action, or reimbursement.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I report a crypto scam if I did not lose money?
Yes. IC3 encourages people to submit a complaint even when no financial loss occurred. A report can document attempted scams and suspicious contact, not only completed transfers.
What if I do not have the transaction hash?
Submit the report with the information you do have rather than delaying solely to find a hash. IC3 says complaints are welcome even when transaction information is unavailable; explain which details you could not obtain.
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Should I pay a company that says it can recover my crypto?
Treat guaranteed recovery claims and upfront-fee demands as warning signs. The FBI says law enforcement does not charge victims to investigate, and recovery solicitations can be a separate scam.
Should I tell the person who scammed me that I filed a report?
No. The FBI warns that notifying suspected criminals of law enforcement involvement may compromise an investigation. Stop engaging and report any later contact through official channels.
Should I contact both my bank and the exchange?
Yes, if each handled part of the payment. The bank or payment provider can review the fiat payment or account activity; the exchange can review records within its systems. Contacting one does not automatically resolve the other part.
The Bottom Line
Stop paying, secure compromised accounts, and contact each exchange and financial institution through independently verified channels. Save a clear timeline and transaction details, then report internet-enabled scams to IC3—even if you have not confirmed a loss. Reports create a record, not a guarantee of a freeze or reimbursement; avoid anyone promising recovery for a fee.
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