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Government Agencies to Which You May Report Frauds and Scams

Government Agencies Around the World to Which You May Report Frauds and Scams

United States of America

(Click here for state agencies)

  • Federal Trade Commission - The Federal Trade Commission provides information to help consumers spot and avoid fraudulent practices in the marketplace, and can be contacted at the following:
    FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
    600 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE NW
    WASHINGTON DC 20580-0001
    Phone: 1-877-FTC-HELP

    Click here to search the FTC database to see if a particular company or product has been investigated for false advertising, defective products or other trade issues? Just search the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) database.
     
  • FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigations)
    • Local FBI office: Click here to locate your local FBI office's address and phone number.
    • FBI Internet Fraud Complaint Center
      The Internet Crime Complaint Center can best process your complaint if they receive accurate and complete information from you. They request that you provide the following information, if available, when filing a complaint:
      • Your name
      • Your mailing address
      • Your telephone number
      • Name of the individual or business that defrauded you
      • Address of the individual or business that defrauded you
      • Telephone number of the individual or business that defrauded you
      • Website and email address of the individual or business that defrauded you
      • Specific details on how you were defrauded
      • Any other relevant information necessary to support your complaint
  • National Fraud Information Center - non-government org - The NFIC was originally established in 1992 by the National Consumers League, the oldest nonprofit consumer organization in the United States, to fight the growing menace of telemarketing fraud by improving prevention and enforcement.
  • US Postal Service - The U.S. Postal Inspection Service should be contacted if you think you may have been victimized by a fraudulent promotional offer. You can contact them at the following address, or check the government pages of your telephone book:
    US POSTAL INSPECTION SERVICE
    OPERATIONS SUPPORT GROUP
    222 S RIVERSIDE PLAZA SUITE 1250
    CHICAGO IL 60606-6100
    800-372-8347
     
  • Secret Service - If you ever receive an e-mail or fax from someone you do not know requesting your assistance in a financial transaction, such as the transfer of a large sum of money into an account, or claiming you are the next of kin to an wealthy person who has died, or the winner of some obscure lottery and suffered a significant financial loss related to the advance fee fraud (so-called "Nigerian scam"), please contact your local Secret Service field office. Telephone numbers are available in the Field Office Directory and may also be found on the inside cover of your local telephone directory. Any investigation regarding this type of fraud will be conducted on a case by case basis at the discretion of the local Secret Service and U.S. Attorney's Office.
     
  • State Attorneys General. Your state Attorney General or local office of consumer protection is also listed in the government pages of your telephone book.
     
  • Securities and Exchange Commission - The SEC has an online center for complaints and enforcement tips.  Through this page you can file a complaint or provide the S.E.C with tips on potential securities law violations.
     
  • EConsumer.gov, a service of the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network
     
  • Tax scams: Whether by email, mail or phone send the information and a copy of the mail or email to phishing@irs.gov

State Agencies

Click on your state below:

Alabama ] [ Alaska ] [ Arkansas ] [ Arizona ] [ California ] [ Colorado ] [ Connecticut ] [ Delaware ] [District of Columbia] [ Florida ] [ Georgia ] [ Hawaii ] [ Idaho ] [ Illinois ] [ Indiana ] [ Iowa ] [ Kansas ] [ Kentucky ] [ Louisiana ] [ Maine ] [ Maryland ] [ Massachusetts ] [ Michigan ] [ Minnesota ] [ Mississippi ] [ Missouri ] [Montana] [Nebraska] [ Nevada ] [ New Hampshire ] [ New Jersey ] [ New Mexico ] [ New York ] [ North Carolina ] [ North Dakota ] [ Ohio ] [ Oklahoma ] [ Oregon ] [ Pennsylvania ] [ Rhode Island ] [ South Carolina ] [ South Dakota ] [ Tennessee ] [ Texas ] [ Utah ] [ Vermont ] [ Virginia ] [ Washington state ] [Washington, DC]  [ West Virginia ] [ Wisconsin ]  [ Wyoming ]

Non-governmental Agencies and Organizations that can help with frauds

  • Better Business Bureau Contact the Better Business Bureau where the company is located.
  • National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch The NFIC is a project of the National Consumers League, which helps consumers with information, referral services, and assistance in filing complaints. or 800-876-7060, TDD 202-835-0778. The information you provide helps to stop identity theft.   
  • Call for Action, the international nonprofit network of hotlines working in partnership with radio and television stations, resolves consumer problems through free and confidential mediation.
    CALL FOR ACTION INC
    5272 RIVER ROAD SUITE 300
    BETHESDA MD 20816-1405
    1-800-647-1756
  • Nigeria ' The 419 Coalition
  • Direct Marketing Association (DMA) member companies will assist you if you have a question or complaint or would like to request that your name be removed from their promotions:
    • Publishers Clearing House
      Christopher Irving
      Director, Consumer Affairs
      Publishers Clearing House
      382 Channel Drive
      Port Washington, NY 11050
      Tel: 800-337-4724
    • Time, Inc.
      Rosalyn McDavid
      Time, Inc.
      1271 Avenue of the Americas
      New York, NY 10020
    • Reader's Digest Association, Inc.
      Reader's Digest Customer Service
      1995 G Avenue
      Red Oak, IA 51566
      Tel: 800-635-5006
    • Suarez Corporation
      Customer Service
      Suarez Corporation
      7800 Whipple Ave. NW
      North Canton, OH 44720
      Tel: 330-494-4282

Other Countries

Global and Regional Agencies

Australia

Canada

Estonia

Finland

Germany

Hong Kong

Hungary

India

Ireland

Italy

Jamaica

Japan

Korea

Malta

Mexico

New Zealand

Norway

Poland

Russia

Singapore

Spain

Sweden

UK

And please let us know about any suspicious calls or emails you receive.  We look for patterns so that we can alert the authorities and victims to new scams, before it is too late!

 

 


 

For a comprehensive list of national and international agencies to report scams, see this page.