What to Do If You Got Scammed: Your First 24 Hours Checklist

If you have just realized you were scammed, take a slow breath first. Feeling shocked, embarrassed, or angry is completely normal — and it is not your fault. Scams today are built by professionals who use polished websites, fake caller IDs, and scripts designed to fool careful people, including bank employees, teachers, and retirees who have managed money their whole lives.

What matters now is not what happened an hour ago. What matters is what you do in the next 24 hours. Acting quickly can sometimes stop a payment, protect your other accounts, and prevent a bad day from turning into identity theft that follows you for years. This checklist walks you through the exact order to do things in, one step at a time.

Step 1: Stop All Contact With the Scammer

Your very first move is to cut off communication.

1. Stop replying to texts, emails, calls, and social media messages.
2. Do not answer if the scammer calls back. Block the number where you can.
3. Do not click any more links they sent, and do not download anything else they asked you to install.
4. If they had you install a remote-access app or screen-sharing tool, delete it now and restart your device.

Scammers often call back pretending to be someone new — a "supervisor," a bank investigator, or even a recovery agent who says they can get your money back for a fee. That second contact is usually a second scam. Ending contact protects you from losing more.

Step 2: Try to Stop the Money — Based on How You Paid

How you paid decides who you call and how urgent it is. Find your payment method below and act on it right away.

If you paid by credit card or debit card

Call the number on the back of your card immediately. Tell the issuer the charge was part of a scam and ask them to reverse or dispute the charge and close the card. Credit card payments generally give you the strongest dispute rights. Write down the date, time, and name of the person you spoke with.

If you paid by bank transfer, wire, or Zelle

Contact your bank immediately and ask it to try to recall or reverse the transfer. Be honest with yourself about the odds: wire transfers and payment apps are designed to move money fast, and a recall is often not possible once the money lands. Ask anyway — the sooner your bank starts, the better your chances. Never let anyone tell you a reversal is guaranteed, because it is not.

If you paid with gift cards

Call the company that issued the gift card right away — the number or website is printed on the back of the card. Report the scam and ask if the money on the card can be frozen or refunded. Keep the physical cards and your purchase receipt; you will need the card numbers when you file your reports.

If you paid with cryptocurrency

Contact the exchange or platform you used to send the payment and report the fraud. Be prepared: cryptocurrency payments usually cannot be reversed. Reporting still matters, because exchanges and law enforcement use these reports to track scam wallets and networks.

If you paid through a payment app like Cash App, Venmo, or PayPal

Report the transaction inside the app and ask the company to reverse it. If the app is linked to your bank card, also call the card issuer, because that gives you a second path to dispute the charge.

If you mailed cash or a check

If you used the U.S. Mail, report it to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. If the package has not been delivered yet, your carrier may be able to intercept it — ask your bank or the carrier right away.

Step 3: Lock Down Your Accounts

Scammers rarely want only one payment. If you shared passwords, codes, or personal details, assume they will try them elsewhere.

1. Change the password on the account involved — and start with your email account, because email is the key that resets almost everything else.
2. Change passwords on banking, shopping, and social media accounts, especially anywhere you reused the same password.
3. Turn on two-factor authentication everywhere it is offered, preferably with an authenticator app rather than text messages.
4. If you gave remote access to your computer, run a security scan with reputable antivirus software, or have a trusted local professional check the device before you use it for banking again.
5. If you shared your Social Security number, driver's license, or other ID details, read Step 5 below carefully — you may be facing identity theft, not just a lost payment.

Step 4: Report the Scam to the FTC

Once your money and accounts are as secure as you can make them, report what happened to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov (https://ReportFraud.ftc.gov).

Reporting takes only a few minutes. You will be asked what happened, how the scammer contacted you, how much you paid, and how you paid. The FTC does not investigate or resolve individual cases, and filing a report does not by itself get your money back. Your report still matters a lot: the FTC uses reports from the public to spot patterns, build cases against scam operations, and warn other consumers before they are targeted.

If the scam happened online — for example through a fake website, social media, or email — also file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov (https://www.ic3.gov).

Step 5: Protect Yourself From Identity Theft

If the scammer got personal information — your Social Security number, date of birth, bank login, or copies of your ID — take these extra steps today:

1. Go to IdentityTheft.gov (https://www.IdentityTheft.gov), the FTC's official recovery site. Answer its questions and it will build a personal recovery plan and an Identity Theft Report for you.
2. Place a free credit freeze with each of the three credit bureaus — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. A freeze blocks new accounts from being opened in your name, it is free by law, and it does not hurt your credit score.
3. Check your bank and card statements closely for the next few months, and review your free credit reports for accounts you do not recognize.

Step 6: Save Everything

Before you delete the conversation in frustration, save the evidence:

• Screenshots of messages, profiles, websites, and ads
• Phone numbers, email addresses, usernames, and web addresses the scammer used
• Receipts, gift card numbers, transaction IDs, and bank records
• Your notes on what happened, in the order it happened, while it is fresh

Store it in one folder. Your bank, the police, the FTC, and the FBI can all use this material, and it is much harder to reconstruct later.

Step 7: Watch Out for the "Recovery" Scam

In the days after a scam, victims are often targeted again. Someone may contact you claiming to be from the FTC, the FBI, your bank, or a "fund recovery" company, saying they found your money and need a fee, a gift card, or your bank details to release it.

Real government agencies and banks do not work this way. No legitimate service will ask you to pay upfront to recover scammed money, and anyone who promises a guaranteed recovery is lying. Hang up, and report the contact at ReportFraud.ftc.gov as well.

Your First 24 Hours, in One List

1. Cut off all contact with the scammer and remove any app they had you install.
2. Call your bank or card issuer and try to stop or dispute the payment.
3. Change passwords — email first — and turn on two-factor authentication.
4. Report the scam at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and at ic3.gov if it happened online.
5. If personal information was shared, start at IdentityTheft.gov and freeze your credit with all three bureaus.
6. Save every message, receipt, and transaction record in one place.
7. Refuse any offer to "recover" your money for a fee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I actually get my money back after a scam?

Sometimes, depending on how you paid — but no one can promise it. Credit card charges are the easiest to dispute. Gift card, wire, payment app, and crypto payments are much harder to reverse, which is exactly why speed matters. Call your bank or card issuer immediately, ask directly what they can do, and be suspicious of anyone who guarantees recovery.

Should I report the scam if I did not lose any money?

Yes. Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov anyway. The FTC uses reports about attempted scams — fake texts, phishing emails, imposter calls — to track which scams are active and to warn the public. Your report can protect the next person the scammer contacts.

Should I file a police report?

You can, and in identity theft cases it is often useful to have one, especially if a creditor or bank asks for documentation. Bring your FTC Identity Theft Report from IdentityTheft.gov and your saved evidence. For a straightforward lost payment, start with your bank and the FTC, then ask your local police department's non-emergency line if a report would help in your situation.

I am too embarrassed to tell anyone. What should I do?

Tell someone anyway — a family member, a friend, or your bank. Embarrassment is part of the scammer's business model: silence is what lets them target the next victim with the same story. Millions of Americans report fraud every year, including doctors, lawyers, and IT professionals. Being scammed says nothing about your intelligence. Acting quickly says everything about your response.

You Have Already Done the Hardest Part

Realizing what happened and deciding to act is the hardest step, and you have already taken it. Work through this checklist in order, keep your records together, and give yourself time — the fear and frustration fade, and the steps you take today genuinely limit the damage. Share this checklist with family and friends, too. The best protection any of us has is knowing the playbook before the scammer calls.

Scam Guard USA provides general education about scams, not legal or financial advice. For help with your specific situation, contact your bank, local law enforcement, or a qualified professional.