The FBI is one of many agencies tasked with investigating crime and preventing crime. If you have been targeted by a scammer, you can make a report to the FBI regarding the type of scam, means of contact and if you suffered any loss or damages. Reports can be made online, over the phone or in person, and you can make your report anonymously if you do not want to provide your name.
With the digital world comes new ways for scammers to try to steal your money, your identity or other key pieces of information about your life. If you suspect you have been targeted by a scammer, you can make a report to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). How do you report a scam to the FBI? You can get more information by calling their hotline here, and you can learn more below about how to file a report.
First, it is important to know the role the FBI plays in tracking and stopping scams. The FBI provides a number of educational resources on its website about how to protect yourself and your family from scammers, as well as the most common scams circulating. Scammers operate in a number of categories including: adoption scams, romance scams, charity and disaster fraud, holiday scams and identify theft, to name a few. The FBI not only tells individuals how to identify these scams, it provides steps you can take to protect yourself from becoming a victim.
If you find you have become a victim, or there has been an attempt to victimize you by a scammer, you can make a report to the FBI. Scam reports can be made online, via telephone or in person.
If you wish to make your report online, you can do so by following these steps:
You can also contact your local FBI field office via telephone to make a scam report. When you call, provide the individual with as much information about the scam as possible, such as an email address if you received a suspicious email, name of scam artist, type of scam (romance, adoption, disaster fund, or other) and if you are out any money or property due to the scam. You can also contact their central phone line here to make a report.
You can also go to the local FBI field office if you live near one and provide the same information you'd submit online or via telephone.
Once a report has been made, depending on the nature and the amount of loss, your report may result in an actual investigation or it may be used for intelligence gathering purposes only. For more information, you can contact the FBI here.
GetHuman has been working for over 10 years on sourcing information about big organizations like US FBI in order to help customers resolve customer service issues faster. We started with contact information and fastest ways to reach a human at big companies. Particularly ones with slow or complicated IVR or phone menu systems. Or companies that have self-serve help forums instead of a customer service department. From there, we realized that consumers still needed more detailed help solving the most common problems, so we expanded to this set of guides, which grows every day. And if you spot any issues with our How Do I Report a Scam to the Fbi? guide, please let us know by sending us feedback. We want to be as helpful as possible. If you appreciated this guide, please share it with your favorite people. Our free information and tools is powered by you, the customer. The more people that use it, the better it gets.