Get help
Who to contact, and in what order
Most people can work out roughly what to do. What is hard, straight after it happens, is knowing what to do first. Some of these steps have a time limit.
Step 1 · Where are you?
Step 2 · What happened?
- I sent money to someoneA transfer, a card payment, gift cards, or cryptocurrency.
- Someone got into one of my accountsEmail, social media, banking, or anything else you log in to.
- Someone is using my identityAccounts opened in your name, or your documents were taken or leaked.
- Someone is threatening to share private imagesSextortion, or images shared without your consent.
- Someone I met online is asking for moneyA partner, an investment tip, or a friend you have never met in person.
- I clicked a link or installed somethingYou are not sure whether any harm was done.
- I am not sure what happenedSomething feels wrong but you cannot name it yet.
Your next steps
In the next hour
Write down exactly which documents are involved
Licence, passport, Medicare, bank details. What you replace and in what order depends entirely on this list, and it is easy to forget one under stress.
Do not delete anything yet
The messages, emails and receipts are evidence. People often clear them out of embarrassment, and then cannot prove what happened. Screenshot everything before you change any passwords.
Today
Tell one person you trust
Scams work by keeping you isolated, and shame does the rest. Saying it out loud to one person is usually the point where it stops.
Start at IdentityTheft.gov
The FTC walks you through a recovery plan specific to what was taken. It is the best starting point in the US.
Freeze your credit with all three bureaus
Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. A freeze is free and stops new accounts being opened.
You are not the only one
My mortgage was denied because someone else is living as me
“I’m posting this here because I don’t know where else to go. I just got denied for a mortgage because of a "delinquent…”
These organizations are independent of us. We list them because they are the right people to speak to, not because we are connected to them. If you are in immediate danger, call your local emergency number first.
The full directory
Everything we know about, including international options.
Report a crime
Police and government agencies by country.
Identity and accounts
Help with stolen identity and compromised accounts.
Still stuck?
Send us a message and a person will read it. We cannot recover money or investigate, but we can point you at the right place.