PATCH · RESTORED

It happened. Let's take the next step together.

If you were just scammed — or think you might have been — you are not stupid, and you are not alone. These attacks are engineered by professionals to work on smart, careful people. The scammer is the only person who did something wrong here. Patch will stay with you through every step below, and this list saves itself so you can come back any time.

If money is moving right now: stop reading and call your bank first — use the phone number printed on the back of your card, never a number from a text or email. Then come back. This list will be here.

Your progress: 0 steps done

1 Stop the bleeding

Only do the steps that match what happened. Skip the rest — this is your list, not a test.

I paid with a credit or debit card

Call the number on the back of the card. Say: "I need to dispute a fraudulent charge and replace this card." Card payments are the most reversible — acting today genuinely helps.

I sent a wire, Zelle, or bank transfer

Call your bank now and ask for a recall or fraud reversal. Speed matters most here — banks can sometimes stop a transfer in the first hours. If the first person can't help, ask for the fraud department.

I bought gift cards and shared the codes

Keep the cards and receipts. Contact the card company (Apple, Google, Amazon, etc.) and tell them the cards were used in a scam — sometimes unspent balances can be frozen. Honestly: recovery isn't guaranteed, but reporting fast is your best chance, and it flags those cards network-wide.

I sent cryptocurrency

Honest truth: crypto transfers usually can't be reversed. Report it anyway at ic3.gov — your report builds the case that catches them and protects the next person. That matters, and it counts.

I typed or shared a password

Change it now — starting with your email account, because email is the master key to everything else. If you used that password anywhere else, change it there too, and turn on two-factor sign-in where offered.

I shared my Social Security number or ID

Freeze your credit — it's free and it stops new accounts being opened in your name: Equifax 1‑800‑685‑1111, Experian 1‑888‑397‑3742, TransUnion 1‑800‑916‑8800. Then get a personal recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov.

I only clicked a link

Take a breath — clicking alone is rarely fatal. If you typed anything after clicking, do the password step above. Run your device's security scan, and be extra suspicious of follow-up texts or calls this week.

2 Report it — ten minutes that fight back

Reporting isn't paperwork. It's how the people who did this get found, and how the next person gets protected.

Tell the FTC

reportfraud.ftc.gov — takes about ten minutes. This is the report that feeds real investigations.

Tell the FBI's internet crime unit

ic3.gov — especially if money moved online or crypto was involved.

If you lost money: file a local police report

Call your police department's non-emergency number. Some banks and insurers require a police report number for fraud claims — getting one now keeps every door open.

3 Expect the second wave

This is the part almost nobody warns you about — so we will.

In the coming days or weeks, someone may contact you claiming they can get your money back.

They'll say they're from your bank, the FBI, a law firm, or a "fund recovery company." They may know details about what happened to you — scammers sell lists of people they've already hurt, because a person hoping to recover money is their favorite target.

Anyone who contacts YOU offering to recover your money is a scammer. Every time, no exceptions.

Real agencies never call to offer recovery, never ask for fees, gift cards, or crypto, and never need your passwords or remote access to "help." What the second wave looks like:

"We've recovered your funds — pay a release fee / tax first."
"We're investigating your case — install this app so we can assist you."
"This is your bank — move your money to a safe account."
"Act now, this offer expires today." (Urgency again. It's always urgency.)

I know the second wave is coming, and I won't answer it

If one reaches you, hang up, screenshot it, and scan it with PRINCE — the network will remember it for everyone.

4 Tell one person

Secrecy is the scammer's best friend — it's the thing they coach hardest. Telling one person breaks their last hold on you.

Something happened and I think I was scammed. I'm already taking the right steps, but I didn't want to keep it a secret from you. Can we talk when you have a minute?

I told someone

However you said it — out loud, by text, with that message — this step is the bravest one on the page.

Doctors get scammed. Lawyers get scammed. Engineers, professors, security experts — all of them.

Being targeted says nothing about you. What you do next — the steps on this page — says everything, and you're already doing it.

Restored — you're not alone in the after

If this loss has you feeling hopeless, please call or text 988 (US, free, 24/7). You matter more than any amount of money ever will.

Your checklist lives only on this device — nothing on this page is sent to us or anyone else.