How Do I Report Internet Scams/Fraud?

Many victims of internet-based scams and fraud attempts don't end up reporting it, because they're either ashamed of falling for a scam or they think there's just so much of it going on in the world it's pointless to try and do anything about it. But, reporting internet fraud and scams can help other people from becoming victims. Here's how to notify the authorities.

Here are some resources you can use to report internet-based crimes and fraud:

Internet Crime Complaint Center

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (ICCC) is a partnership between the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigations and the National White Collar Crime Center. The ICCC is a good place to report online extortion, identity theft, hacking, economic espionage, and other major cyber crimes. If you don't feel the crime committed against you falls into these categories, but you still feel the crime is serious enough to report, then you can still report it to the ICCC. If it doesn't fall under one of their categories, they might be able to direct you to an agency that does handle it.

Better Business Bureau

The Better Business Bureau of the U.S. and Canada can help you make complaints against internet-based retailers and other businesses. You can also search their database to see if a merchant has other complaints against them and whether they've been resolved or not.

FBI

The FBI has an online tips form you can use to report potential cases of internet fraud, including data breaches, denial of service attacks, malware, phishing, and ransomware. The site will link you to the appropriate agency who handles crime reporting for each specific type of crime.

FTC

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has an online complaint assistant for consumers who want to report fraudulent activity. You can choose from a few complaint categories, including impostor scams, robocalls, pyramid schemes, and much more. Then, you'll need to answer a few related questions and tell the FTC what happened. Reporting these cases to the FTC helps it recognize patterns of fraud and abuse.

eBay Security Center

The eBay Security Center helps report auction related fraud or scams to the proper authorities. You can tell it if you think your account has been hacked. You can also report receiving a fake email. Additionally, the security center provides a way for law enforcement to find out if someone is trying to auction stolen merchandise if you were the victim of a property theft.