The complete scam-fighting guide
Almost every scam, from a Medicare call to a crypto investment, runs on the same handful of pressure tactics. Learn those and you can spot new scams you have never seen before. This page covers how they work, the ones people meet most often, a checklist you can run on any message, and exactly what to do in the first hour if you have already paid.
How scams work
A scam is not a clever story. It is a sequence: reach you, take away your time to think, and move money somewhere it cannot come back from. The story changes constantly, the sequence almost never does. These are the tactics behind it.
Urgency
A deadline you did not choose: an account closing today, a warrant, a package held at customs, an offer that expires in minutes. Urgency exists to stop you checking with anyone else.
Authority
The caller claims to be a bank, a government agency, a utility, a police officer, or the support desk of a company you actually use. Caller ID, logos and email addresses can all be faked.
Fear or shame
Threats of arrest, a cut-off supply, a lost pension, or an embarrassing video that will be sent to your contacts. Shame is used because it stops people asking for help.
Isolation
“Don’t tell the bank staff what this is for.” “Your family is part of the investigation.” Any instruction to keep the conversation secret is, on its own, proof of a scam.
Unusual payment
Gift cards, crypto, wire transfer, a bank-transfer app, or cash handed to a courier. These are chosen because they cannot be reversed. No real agency or company asks for them.
Small win first
Investment and job scams often pay out a small amount early so a bigger deposit feels safe. The first withdrawal is bait, not proof.
The most common scams
Each one has a detailed guide with the exact wording scammers use, the tell that gives it away, and where to report it.
Red-flag checklist
Run any unexpected message, call or website past this list. One flag means slow down. Two or more means stop and verify through a number or address you found yourself.
- You did not start the contact — they called, messaged or emailed you first.
- There is a deadline measured in minutes or hours.
- You are asked to pay by gift card, crypto, wire transfer, or a bank-transfer app.
- You are told to keep it secret, or to mislead your bank about what the money is for.
- The sender address or link domain is close to a real one but not exactly it.
- You are asked for a code that was just texted to you.
- Someone wants remote access to your computer or phone.
- A profile or business has no history: new account, no reviews, no verifiable address.
- The promised return is far above anything a bank or a real investment pays.
- Pressure increases the moment you say you want to check with someone else.
The first hour after a scam
If you have already paid, what you do in the next hour matters more than anything you do later. Work down this list in order.
1. Stop paying, and don’t take the follow-up call
The same group often calls back as the “fraud department” or a recovery service. End the conversation and use a number you look up yourself.
2. Call your bank or card issuer
Use the number on the back of your card. Ask them to stop or recall the payment and to freeze the card. Card and bank-transfer payments have the best chance of recovery within the first 24 hours.
3. Change the passwords you gave away
Start with email, then banking. Turn on two-factor authentication. If you let anyone remote onto your device, disconnect it from the internet and have it checked.
4. Report it in the United States
File with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov, and with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov for anything online or crypto-related. Medicare fraud goes to 1-800-MEDICARE.
5. Report it where you live
Every country has a fraud reporting route — our reporting guide lists the main ones, alongside your bank and the platform where it happened.
6. Add it to the registry
Reporting the number, website or wallet to GACS puts a warning in front of the next person who looks it up.
How GACS helps
Frequently asked questions
What is the single most reliable sign of a scam?
An unusual payment method. Gift cards, crypto, wire transfers and bank-transfer apps are chosen because the money cannot be pulled back. No government agency, utility, bank or legitimate company asks to be paid that way.
Can I get my money back after a scam?
Sometimes, and speed matters more than anything else. Card payments can often be disputed, and banks can attempt to recall a transfer if you call within hours. Crypto and gift cards are rarely recoverable. Contact your bank first, then file a report.
Someone contacted me offering to recover my lost money. Is that real?
Almost never. Recovery-service approaches after a scam are usually a second scam run by the same network or by people who bought the victim list. Legitimate recovery happens through your bank, your card issuer and law enforcement, and it does not require an upfront fee.
How do I check a phone number, website or crypto wallet?
Use the free GACS checkers. Paste a website, a phone number, a wallet address or a social handle and you get what our registry and public sources know about it, with the reasons behind the verdict. No account is needed.
Is it worth reporting a scam if I did not lose money?
Yes. Most registry entries come from people who spotted the attempt and reported it. That is what puts a warning in front of the next person who searches the same number or domain.
Check before you pay, report after you spot
Both tools are free and need no account. Reporting is what keeps the registry useful for everyone else.
Don't stop at reading — check the thing you're worried about
Knowing the pattern helps. Running the check takes 15 seconds and is free.
Related scam-safety guides
- Tech support popup scam
Fake virus warnings, browser lock screens and renewal invoices.
- Sextortion email scam
Why there is no video — and what to do when the threat is real.
- How to check if a website is a scam
The 7-point deep-domain check.
- Is this website a scam? (2026 edition)
Updated checklist for AI-generated storefronts.
