Scam Recovery Scam
After being scammed, victims targeted by "recovery services" promising to get money back for upfront fees. Often run by original scammers.
🚩 Red Flags
- ⚠Upfront fee before any work
- ⚠Found through social media ads
- ⚠Guarantees of recovery
- ⚠Claims to "hack back" crypto
- ⚠Contacted you directly
🛡️ Protect Yourself
- →NEVER PAY upfront for recovery
- →ACCEPT: Most scam losses cannot be recovered
- →REPORT: FBI IC3, FTC (free, legitimate)
- →BANK DISPUTE: Work with bank directly
More Details
- “We specialize in recovering stolen crypto”
- “Our hackers can trace your Bitcoin”
- “We've helped thousands recover losses”
- “Small retainer to open your case”
Common Questions
Sometimes via bank chargebacks. Report to FBI IC3 and FTC (free). Most crypto/wire losses are unrecoverable. Be wary of "recovery services."
Almost never. "Recovery experts" are usually scams — often run by original scammers. Blockchain is irreversible.
They buy victim lists, monitor forums, or are the same people who scammed you originally.
FBI IC3 (ic3.gov), FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov), state attorney general, your bank, and the platform where it happened.
Report This Scam
If you've encountered this scam, report it to help protect others.
Warn Someone You Know
Know someone who might fall for this? Share this warning with them.
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73% of Americans targeted(Pew, 2025)
|$470M lost to text scams in 2024(FTC)
|$16.6B total losses(FBI IC3, 2024)