United Kingdom — if you were scammed

Immediate steps

Stop payments. Do not pay “release”, “tax”, or “AML” fees demanded by the scammer.
Keep evidence: messages, bank references, wallet addresses, URLs, phone numbers.
Contact your bank or payment provider immediately and ask about APP / fraud reimbursement processes that may apply.
For crypto transfers, notify the exchange with transaction hashes and account details.

Report Fraud — national reporting for cyber crime and fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland: reportfraud.police.uk (online or 0300 123 2040). This service replaced Action Fraud from December 2025.
Scotland — contact Police Scotland on 101 (Police Scotland is not part of the Report Fraud process).
Emergency — dial 999 if you are in immediate danger.
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) — check firms and use official scam reporting tools: fca.org.uk
Spam texts — forward to 7726. Suspicious emails: follow NCSC guidance.
Bank impersonation calls — you can hang up and call 159 to reach your bank through the industry service where available.

Secure email and banking apps; turn on strong authentication.
Tell close contacts if scammers may impersonate you.
Treat unsolicited “asset recovery” lawyers and agents as high risk until verified. See Fake recovery.

Always use official Report Fraud / FCA / police pages for forms and numbers. This page is general information, not legal advice.

Last verified: 13 October 2026.