Getting scammed sucks. It leaves you feeling violated and angry. But you’re not powerless. Reporting scams and shady businesses to the authorities can help protect others from getting ripped off too. This article will explain how to report bad actors to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and your state consumer protection agency.
What is the FTC?
The FTC is like the federal cop on the consumer protection beat. They investigate scams, prohibit unfair business practices, and sue companies engaging in deceptive marketing. When you submit a complaint to the FTC, you’re helping them spot patterns and build cases against fraudsters.
-You can report a variety of issues to the FTC:
- Identity theft
- Fake prizes or lotteries
- Investment scams
- Bogus business opportunities
- Credit repair scams
- Debt relief scams
- Mortgage assistance relief scams
- Job scams
- Products that don’t work as advertised
The FTC can’t resolve individual complaints. But your report helps law enforcement track down scammers and stop their deceitful practices.
How to File an FTC Complaint
Filing a report with the FTC is easy peasy. Just go to FTC.gov and click “Submit a Consumer Complaint.”
You’ll be asked for some basic info about the scam:
-- The name of the individual or company that ripped you off
- How you were contacted (email, phone, mail, etc)
- How much money you lost
- Payment method (credit card, wire transfer, gift card, etc.)
- A summary of what happened
The FTC complaint form has dropdown menus and checkboxes to make it simple to report the relevant details.
Once you submit the report, you’ll get a confirmation email with a case number. Make sure to save this for your records!
What Happens After You File an FTC Complaint?
The FTC reviews complaints and shares them with law enforcement partners. They look for patterns to identify the biggest consumer threats.
For widespread scams, the FTC might sue the perpetrators or work with agencies like the FBI to shut them down. They also use complaint data to issue alerts that warn other consumers about the latest schemes.
But don’t expect the FTC to recover your lost money or arrest the scammer who ripped you off. They don’t resolve individual complaints or provide direct help to victims. Still, reporting frauds and shady companies is important to protect other people from being targeted.
-File a Complaint with Your State Attorney General
Your state attorney general’s office enforces consumer protection laws too. They can investigate complaints from residents and take action against businesses violating state laws.
What can you report to your state AG? Some common issues include:
- Deceptive advertising
- Faulty products
- Billing scams
- Home improvement scams
- Predatory lending
- Fake charities
- Price gouging
To find the consumer complaint page for your state AG, just search “[State] attorney general consumer complaint.” For example, “California attorney general consumer complaint.”
-The complaint form will ask for:
- Your contact info
- The name of the individual or company
- What happened – explain the situation
- Copies of any documents, like contracts or receipts
After submitting the complaint, an investigator will review it. They may contact you with follow up questions or use the info to build a case against the business. Some AG offices try to mediate individual complaints too.
So reporting frauds and scams to your state AG can sometimes get you direct help. And it aids their investigations and enforcement actions.
Reporting Online Shopping Scams
More people are getting ripped off through online shopping scams lately. If you ordered a product online that was misrepresented or never arrived, reporting it is important.
Common online shopping scams include:
- Fake websites pretending to sell products
- Sellers not shipping items after payment
- Receiving a completely different product than advertised
- Counterfeit goods being sold as the real thing
In these cases, file a complaint with:
- The FTC – they monitor online commerce for fraud.
- Your state AG – they can investigate stores violating local laws.
- The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center – they track online scams and work to take down fraudulent sites.
- The selling platform – for example, report to Amazon if it happened on their marketplace. They can remove fraudulent sellers.
And be sure to keep records like screenshots and order confirmations. They’ll help investigators review your report.
Avoiding Scams in the First Place
They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. While reporting ripoffs is important, not getting scammed in the first place is ideal.
Here are some tips to avoid common scams:
- Be skeptical of offers that seem too good to be true – they usually are!
- Don’t click links or call numbers in unexpected texts/emails – common tricks scammers use.
- Don’t pay upfront for financial help or debt relief services.
- Verify a charity is real before donating.
- Use credit cards for purchases – you can dispute fraudulent charges.
- Check seller reviews and complaints before buying online.
- Shred financial documents and watch your credit reports for identity theft.
- Don’t pay with gift cards, wire transfers, or cryptocurrency – that’s how scammers want you to pay!
Staying vigilant against frauds takes some work. But it’s worth it to avoid the stress and financial pain of getting ripped off!
The Takeaway
Getting targeted by a scam leaves you feeling powerless and violated. But reporting fraudsters to the FTC and your state AG helps protect other potential victims. While they may not be able to get your money back, your complaint provides important data to help authorities build cases against shady businesses and identify new scams as they emerge. Reporting bad actors isn’t just about getting revenge – it’s about stopping these jerks from hurting more people.