The money is gone and your stomach has dropped. Take a breath, then pick up the phone. Stolen funds cannot always be retrieved, but starting a paper trail right away gives you the best chance of limiting the damage.

Call the financial provider immediately

Speed matters most. The Georgia Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division says reporting quickly gives you the best chance of recovering funds and limiting harm to your credit record. Contact the company that moved the money right away. That might be your card issuer, bank fraud department, payment app, or gift card issuer.

Here is the sequence to follow on that first call.

  1. Call the financial provider or payment platform that moved the funds and report unauthorized activity.
  2. State clearly that you want to open a fraud investigation and dispute the transaction.
  3. Request a formal tracking or reference number for the open dispute.
  4. Write down the representative's name, along with the exact date and time of the call.
A handwritten log in a notebook beside a pen and phone, recording reference numbers and call times during a fraud report.
A written log noting reference numbers, timestamps, and customer service representative names during initial fraud reporting calls.

That log sounds tedious. It pays off when a second department asks what the first representative promised. Keep the notebook next to your phone and update it after every conversation.

Know that payment methods change your options

Recovery odds depend heavily on how the money moved. One commercial guide, AntiFraud.com, describes credit cards as offering the strongest protection, while gift cards and cryptocurrency are the hardest to recover. That guide is not a government source, and the sources reviewed here do not give a general recovery rate for any payment type.

The same guide cites a common credit card dispute deadline of 60 days from the statement showing the charge. For debit cards, it says as little as two business days may secure the lowest liability, with 60 days as the outer limit. We could not confirm these figures against government sources here. Deadlines vary by account and institution, so ask your card provider exactly what applies to you, and do it today.

Wires are the most time sensitive. The guide says wire recovery odds are fair within about 72 hours and poor after that. Treat that as a rough estimate, not a rule. If funds left by wire or bank transfer, ask your bank whether the wire can be recalled or frozen. Then file at IC3.gov as soon as possible to document the theft. For gift cards and cryptocurrency, contact the platform anyway. Success may be uncommon, but the claim creates a record.

Report the scam to federal and state agencies

Official reports build a paper trail. The FTC's consumer advice page outlines steps after a financial loss, and you can file a report at reportfraud.ftc.gov. Online scams and cyber-enabled crimes can also go to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The IC3 says to file even if you are unsure your complaint qualifies. It also says it cannot guarantee a response to every complaint, so treat the filing as documentation, not a rescue.

State and local offices add more routes. You can contact your state attorney general or your local police or sheriff's nonemergency line. The sources do not say whether a police report is required for a dispute, so ask your bank directly. If you are unsure where your complaint belongs, the USAGov scam reporting tool asks where the scam happened and what type it was, then points you to the right agency. It also helps when the problem may be a complaint against a legitimate business rather than a scam.

Address identity theft on a separate track

If the scammer got personal details, such as your Social Security number or banking logins, you may be dealing with identity theft as well. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) says to take action on identity theft no matter how much money was taken. AntiFraud.com points victims to IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan.

If someone took money from your checking account without your approval, the CFPB notes there are steps to try to get it back. You can call the CFPB at (855) 411-2372 or read its guide on who to contact for scam help. Then change your passwords on every affected account, starting with email and online banking. The sources reviewed do not cover credit freezes or fraud alerts, so check the credit bureaus directly for those.

Watch out for secondary recovery scams

Victims often get follow-up pitches. Scammers may pose as law firms, crypto recovery experts, or government agents, and may ask for upfront fees, a tax, or your bank login. AntiFraud.com warns that anyone promising to recover your money for a fee is likely running a second scam.

The IC3 says it does not work with law firms or crypto recovery services to recover lost funds, and it will never contact you directly for information or money. It also warns that people are impersonating IC3. The CFPB says real government agencies and financial institutions do not threaten you, tell you to withdraw cash, or ask for gift cards or cryptocurrency. If someone calls claiming to be an official, hang up. Find the number on the agency's real website and call back.

The short version

Call the company that moved the money first, and write down every name and reference number. Report to the FTC and, for online or wire fraud, to IC3. Ask your bank or card issuer for the exact deadlines that apply to you. Then ignore anyone who offers to get your money back for a fee.