I paid a scammer — what should I do?

1. Contact your bank, card issuer, or payment provider now and explain you believe the payment was fraudulent.
2. Ask specifically about recall, chargeback, or buyer-protection claims for your payment method.
3. Do not send more money to “unlock”, “release”, or “recover” the first payment.
4. Save receipts, chat logs, account names, and wallet addresses.
5. Report the incident via your national fraud reporting channel when you can.

Recovery depends heavily on how you paid. Card and some wallet checkouts often have dispute paths; bank transfers, gift cards, and crypto usually do not.

Speed matters for some bank recalls, but avoid anyone who contacts you first offering “recovery services” for a fee.

If you also shared passwords or codes, secure those accounts in parallel.

Be factual with your bank: amounts, dates, recipient details, and why you believe it was a scam.

• Second scammers posing as refund agents
• Requests for more payment to “release” funds
• Pressure to keep the case secret from your bank

1. File a dispute or recall request with the provider
2. Report via Action Fraud (UK) or your local channel
3. Warn close contacts if the scammer used your identity
4. Review how the first contact happened so it is harder to repeat

Fraudly cannot reverse payments or guarantee recovery.

Educational guidance is not legal or financial advice—follow your bank’s and police instructions.