Lost crypto to a scam? Here is what to do now

1. Stop sending money

No fee, tax, "unlock payment" or "withdrawal charge" will release your funds. Every one of them is part of the same scam, and there is always a next one. Stop paying now, however much you have already paid. You do not need to tell the scammer you have stopped.

2. Protect what is left

• If you gave anyone your recovery phrase (seed phrase) or private key: that wallet is no longer yours alone. Create a new wallet with a new phrase on your own device, and move whatever is left into it. Never reuse the old phrase.
• If you connected your wallet to a site and approved something: the approval may still let them take tokens. Paste the transaction hash into Cryptominium search to see what it approved, and revoke it with a tool such as Revoke.cash.
• If you let someone control your computer or phone: disconnect it from the internet. From a different device, change your email and exchange passwords and turn on two-step sign-in with an app, not text messages.
• If you sent ID documents, your Social Security number or bank details: go to IdentityTheft.gov (FTC) for a recovery plan, and call your bank.

3. Ask the company you paid through, today

If the money left through an exchange, an app or a Bitcoin ATM, the FTC's advice is to "contact the cryptocurrency exchange or ATM operator immediately", tell them it was fraud, and ask them to reverse the transaction. Use contact details you look up yourself, or the number on your ATM receipt, never one the scammer gave you.

To be honest about the odds: a crypto payment, once confirmed, cannot be reversed by anyone except the person who received it. Sometimes an exchange can freeze funds that land on its platform, which is why speed matters. Often the money cannot be brought back, and anyone who promises otherwise is the subject of step 6.

4. Keep the evidence

The FBI says the most important part of a report is the transaction detail. Before you report, gather:

• the addresses you sent to, the amounts and which coins, the transaction hashes (IDs), and the dates and times;
• how you first met them, and every message, name, email address, phone number and username they used;
• the websites, apps and platforms they told you to use, and which exchange you sent from;
• a short timeline, in your own words, while you remember it.

Take screenshots. Do not delete the conversations, even the painful ones. Paste any address or transaction hash into Cryptominium search to see in plain English what it is and what moved.

5. Report it

Reporting rarely brings the money back on its own, but it is how cases get built, and the record is yours if funds are ever found. In the US, report to IC3 first, then the others that fit.

• IC3, the Internet Crime Complaint Center (FBI). The main US report for crypto fraud. File even if you did not lose money.
• ReportFraud.ftc.gov (Federal Trade Commission). Shared with over 2,000 law enforcers. The FTC says it cannot resolve individual reports, but uses them to bring cases.
• CFTC tips and complaints (Commodity Futures Trading Commission). For fake trading platforms and crypto investment schemes. Toll-free 866-366-2382.
• SEC tips, complaints and referrals (Securities and Exchange Commission). For investment fraud: Ponzi schemes, "high-yield" programs, unregistered offerings.
• Your state attorney general. Find yours through the National Association of Attorneys General. In Texas: file a consumer complaint.
• Your local police. A police report number helps with your bank, your exchange and your taxes.

Help by phone

• National Elder Fraud Hotline (US Department of Justice): 833-372-8311. For anyone aged 60 or over. Free, Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern; English, Spanish and other languages. They can help you file with IC3.
• AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline (AARP): 877-908-3360. Free, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern. Trained volunteers who will listen and help you work out what to do.

Outside the US

• United Kingdom: Report Fraud (England, Wales and Northern Ireland), the service that replaced Action Fraud. 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, report through 101.
• Canada: Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. 1-888-495-8501, Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Eastern.
• Australia: Scamwatch, and ReportCyber for a police report. Police report: cyber.gov.au.

6. Watch for the second scam

After a loss, the next contact is often someone offering to get the money back: a "recovery specialist", a "blockchain forensics" firm, a law firm, even someone claiming to be from the FBI. They charge a fee up front, and the fee is the scam. People are often hit harder the second time than the first.

In August 2025 the FBI warned about fake law firms targeting crypto scam victims. In its words: "There are no law firms which are officially authorized partners of US Government agencies." It adds that the government "does not request payment for law enforcement services provided", and IC3 says it "will never directly contact you for information or money."

Walk away if they contacted you first, ask for your recovery phrase, want a fee before anything is recovered, guarantee success, or put you in a WhatsApp group "for your safety". How to spot a recovery scam covers every tell.

What Cryptominium can and cannot do

We cannot trace, freeze or recover stolen crypto, and we will never ask for your recovery phrase, your keys or a fee to look at your case. What we can give you, free: search reads any address or transaction hash in plain English, and our Bitcoin ATM listings carry the FTC's figures on ATM scams. Our Recovery Toolkit is for a wallet you are locked out of, such as a forgotten password, not for crypto someone has taken.

Every agency, address, number and hour on this page was read at the agency's own site on 8 October 2026. Sources: IC3 on cryptocurrency · FBI warning on fake law firms, 13 Aug 2025 · FTC: what to do if you were scammed · DOJ Elder Fraud Hotline · AARP helpline. Groups that help victims are welcome to link to or print this page. Something out of date? Tell us.