Being scammed is disorienting, and the next thing that happens is often a second scam: someone contacts you claiming they can get the money back for an up-front fee. The FBI warns that these “recovery” operations deliberately target people who have already been defrauded. The honest version of recovery help is less dramatic — report it for free, move fast with your bank, preserve evidence, and get a realistic read on what can actually be done. This page is the map.
First: report it for free (do this today)
These channels are free, run by the U.S. government, and the reason a later investigation or bank claim has anything to stand on. File them before you do anything else:
- FBI — Internet Crime Complaint Center: ic3.gov — the federal front door for internet crime and the fastest path to the Financial Fraud Kill Chain if a wire just left.
- FTC — report fraud: reportfraud.ftc.gov — feeds pattern data shared with thousands of law-enforcement partners.
- FTC — identity theft: IdentityTheft.gov — if your name or identity was used, this builds an official report and a recovery plan.
- Your bank or payment provider: call the fraud department the same day if money moved by wire, Zelle, or card — many claim windows start on the transaction date.
The honest part: what recovery really looks like
No legitimate service can guarantee it will get your money or account back for an up-front fee. Recovery is genuinely possible in narrow circumstances — usually when regulated U.S. institutions were involved and can be reached within roughly 72 hours, before funds are withdrawn. Crypto sent to an unknown attacker is generally final: industry tracing finds that only on the order of ~$1 is recovered for every ~$65 stolen. A trustworthy investigator tells you that up front instead of selling a doomed effort.
Find the guide for your situation
Each guide leads with the same FBI warning and sticks to verified facts.
Crypto & investment scams
- Crypto “recovery” services are usually a second scam
- Can stolen crypto be recovered? The honest odds
- What is pig butchering? A plain-English explainer
- Pig-butchering warning signs to catch it early
Elder fraud & impersonation
- My parent was scammed — what to do now
- The grandparent scam now uses AI voice cloning
- Tech-support scams: the fake “your computer is infected” call
Wire, payment & romance fraud
- You wired money to a scammer: the first 24 hours
- Real-estate closing wire fraud
- Gift-card and Zelle scams
- Romance-scam red flags (before you lose money)
- How to report a scam (free, step by step)
When a forensic investigator can help
If the loss was large, the case is going to court, the victim is elderly or vulnerable, or an attacker keeps getting back in, a credentialed digital-forensics examiner can preserve court-admissible evidence, trace attribution where possible, and support a filing. SleuthX works these cases by loss type:
- Crypto scam recovery
- Pig-butchering scam investigation
- Romance scam & catfish investigation
- Wire fraud recovery
- Elder fraud investigation
There is no charge to ask, and a reputable investigator will tell you honestly when the free rails above are all you need — and when they are not. If a guide above fits your situation, read it first; it will tell you exactly what to preserve and who to call.
