Online scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated, causing more and more people to fall victim to them. Read on to learn how to get money back after being scammed online.
Many scams, such as identity theft, are designed to harvest email addresses for use in spam email marketing, and fake websites make you watch ads.
However, the most devastating online scams make people hand over large amounts of money to scammers.
These include:
- Binary options, Forex, and CFDs trading scams
- Cryptocurrency investment and mining scams
- Dating and romance scams
- And many other types of scams
There is even a type of scam where the scammers target people who were already scammed, offering them help to recover their money. When the scammed person pays the fake recovery company, the scammers take the money and disappear without providing the recovery service. Often these scammers are the same fraudsters that scammed the victim before.
Losing large amounts of money in such scams can be highly upsetting, embarrassing, and even shameful. Only a person who has been a victim can understand that.
This shame can trigger one to want to forget about it without reporting it, not to mention trying to get the money back.
Moreover, when cryptocurrencies (such as Bitcoin) are involved, it’s not like you can call the bank or credit card company and ask them to reverse the charges. People perceive cryptocurrency transactions to be irreversible and anonymous.
We’re here to tell you that forgetting about it is a grave mistake.
You’re not alone. Millions of people have been scammed, and millions more will be scammed if victims do not take action and try to stop the scammers by reporting them and getting their money back.
Get in touch with our affiliated Cryptocurrency Forensic Specialists at CNC Intelligence for free by filling out the form below.
We have already explained how to report a scammer online. If you have been scammed, report the scammer before you begin the recovery process.
In this comprehensive guide, we focus on recovering your money.
How To Get Money Back After Being Scammed Online
Unfortunately, you have been scammed and lost a significant amount of money.
Here are the steps you should take:
Scammed Online How To Get Money Back – Step 1
The first thing to do is to report the scammer.
After you file a report with the relevant authorities (and also on CyberScamReview.com, where we use visitor reports to create scam warnings that reach a broad audience, preventing many people from falling into the same scam), the next step is to begin the recovery process.
Here are the steps you need to take to recover your funds:
How To Get Money Back From Scammer – Step 2
Next, you need to collect information. Create a folder on your computer that will contain all the relevant files you can find, such as:
- Emails between you and the scammer.
- Other relevant correspondence includes chat logs from social media, telephone numbers, conversation recordings, and text messages.
- A screenshot of the perpetrators’ website, social media accounts, or other online assets (this is important since they may be removed, and most likely will be removed eventually, either in the scammers’ effort to erase their tracks or due to action by law enforcement or the hosting service).
- A chronological account of the events resulting in you being scammed.
- Screenshots and spreadsheets containing information regarding the monetary transactions from your bank, credit card company, or cryptocurrency exchange to the fraudsters.
- Any other information that can be relevant to establish a case against the scammers.
Once you have collected all the relevant information, the next step is the actual recovery of the funds.
How Do I Get My Money Back From A Scammer – Final Step
This third and final step differs depending on how you lost the money.
If you send the money using a debit or credit card, you should contact the fraud department at the bank issuing the card and the credit card company. If possible, email them all the information you have collected. If you can only call them, ideally, record the call. Ask for the name of the person you are speaking with and keep a record of it. Ask them how you can send them the information about the scam.
If you sent money using a wire (e.g., a bank transfer or via a company such as MoneyGram or Western Union), you should follow the same steps but contact your bank or the company through which you sent the money.
If you have sent a gift card, you must contact the company that issued the card.
If you use a money transfer app, such as PayPal or CashApp, you will need to contact the fraud department at these companies, explaining the situation and asking to reverse the transaction.
If you send cash by mail, you must contact the delivery service, such as US Mail, FedEx, or UPS, as soon as possible and ask them to intercept the package.
Finally, there’s the issue of cryptocurrency. This can be one of the most challenging cases, which is why a professional recovery service is often required. Before you contact a recovery service, you can try to get the exchange from which you sent the money. If it is not too late to reverse the transaction or if they can contact the receiving exchange, perhaps they will be able to help.
However, sometimes cryptocurrency can be transferred to exchanges or wallets that cannot be coerced into reversing the transaction and returning the money.
In these cases, it’s recommended to consider hiring a cryptocurrency forensic investigation company, such as CNC Intelligence.
These companies employ experts capable of tracing cryptocurrency transactions. These private investigators can locate the person to whom you sent the money. They then travel to the perpetrator’s location and work in cooperation with law enforcement and lawyers to make them return the money. This can be costly, so it is primarily relevant for people who lost money.
How To Recover Money From A Scammer – Bottom Line
Whether you have been scammed to pay money via card, wire transfer, or any other payment method, including cryptocurrencies, it is often possible to recover money from scammers.
If you need more assistance and advice regarding money recovery, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
We will be happy to guide you throughout the process – from collecting the information to reporting the scam and recovering your money.
Hopefully, you know how to get money back after being scammed online.
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