Act quickly, but do not panic. Contacting the right organizations promptly may help limit additional loss.

Start with the section that best describes what happened. You may need to complete steps in more than one section.

Call 911 if someone is in immediate danger, a crime is in progress, or a suspicious person is at your home and refuses to leave.

Pinehurst Police—Non-Emergency: 910-295-3141

If You Sent Money

Contact the financial institution or payment company immediately. Tell the representative that the payment was connected to fraud and ask whether it can be stopped, reversed, recalled, or flagged.

Do not wait until you have collected every detail. Make the first call quickly and provide additional information as it becomes available.

Credit or Debit Card

• Contact the bank or company that issued the card.
• Report the transaction as fraudulent.
• Ask whether the charge can be reversed.
• Ask whether the card should be canceled and replaced.
• Review recent transactions for other unauthorized charges.
• Change the online account password.

Use the telephone number on the back of the card or a trusted statement—not a number supplied by the scammer.

Bank Transfer or Unauthorized Withdrawal

• Contact the bank’s fraud department immediately.
• Report the transfer or withdrawal.
• Ask whether the transfer can be stopped or recalled.
• Ask whether affected accounts should be closed or restricted.
• Change online banking passwords from a secure device.
• Review contact information, linked accounts, transfer recipients, and automatic payments for unauthorized changes.

If a scammer told you to move money to a “safe account,” explain that to the bank. There is no special account that government officials or law enforcement use to protect a resident’s money.

Check

• Contact your bank immediately.
• Ask whether payment can be stopped.
• Provide the check number, amount, date, and recipient.
• Monitor the account for altered or additional checks.
• Consider closing the account if account and routing numbers were exposed.

If someone sent you a check and asked you to return part of the money, do not send anything. A deposited check may appear to clear before the bank determines that it is fraudulent.

Payment Application

If money was sent through a payment application:

• Report the transaction through the application.
• Contact the company’s fraud department.
• Ask whether the payment can be reversed.
• Contact the bank or card issuer connected to the application.
• Change the application password.
• Review linked accounts and devices.

Use the application’s official help section rather than a customer-service telephone number found through an advertisement or supplied by the scammer.

Wire Transfer

Contact the bank or wire-transfer company immediately. Ask it to:

• Flag the transfer as fraudulent
• Stop the transaction if it has not been completed
• Attempt to recall the transfer
• Preserve the transaction record

Keep the transfer receipt and reference number.

Gift Card

• Contact the company that issued the gift card immediately.
• Report that the card was used in a scam.
• Ask whether any funds remain and whether they can be frozen or refunded.
• Keep the physical card.
• Keep the purchase and activation receipts.
• Preserve photographs of the card and any messages containing the card number.

Do not give the card or receipt to the scammer, even if the scammer promises a refund.

Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency transactions are generally difficult to reverse, but you should still act quickly:

• Contact the cryptocurrency exchange, platform, or ATM operator used for the transaction.
• Report the transaction as fraudulent.
• Ask whether the recipient account can be frozen or flagged.
• Preserve wallet addresses, transaction identifiers, receipts, and screenshots.
• Report the incident to law enforcement and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Be cautious of anyone who promises to recover cryptocurrency for an upfront fee. This is frequently a second scam.

Cash

If cash was mailed or shipped:

• Contact the delivery company immediately.
• Ask whether delivery can be stopped or the package intercepted.
• Keep the receipt and tracking number.
• Notify law enforcement.

Do not attempt to retrieve cash by confronting the recipient yourself.

Report the Payment Fraud

After contacting the financial institution or payment company:

• Contact the Pinehurst Police Department at 910-295-3141.
• Report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission.
• Report internet-enabled fraud to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center.

The FTC provides payment-specific recovery guidance through What to Do if You Were Scammed.

If You Shared Personal Information

The appropriate response depends on what information was disclosed.

Username or Password

• Change the password immediately.
• Use a different, secure device if the scammer accessed your device.
• Change the password anywhere else it was reused.
• Enable multifactor authentication.
• Sign out of other active sessions.
• Review account recovery email addresses and telephone numbers.
• Check for unfamiliar devices or login activity.
• Secure your email account first if it may be compromised.

Do not provide anyone with a verification code sent while you are changing the password.

Bank or Card Information

• Contact the bank or card issuer.
• Ask whether affected cards or accounts should be replaced.
• Review recent activity.
• Enable transaction notifications.
• Change online account credentials.
• Monitor statements carefully.

Social Security Number

If your Social Security number was shared or exposed:

1. Visit IdentityTheft.gov for steps based on your situation.
2. Review your credit reports for unfamiliar accounts.
3. Consider placing a credit freeze with all three credit bureaus.
4. Consider adding a fraud alert.
5. Review your Social Security record and create or secure your my Social Security account.
6. Report actual misuse to the appropriate agencies and law enforcement.

A Social Security number generally is not replaced simply because it was exposed. The priority is protecting existing accounts, monitoring credit, and reporting any misuse.

The Social Security Administration provides specific guidance for a lost, stolen, or exposed Social Security number and information about Social Security fraud and identity theft.

Driver’s License or Identification

• Contact the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles for current instructions.
• Report a lost or stolen license.
• Watch for unfamiliar accounts or notices.
• Preserve a copy of the police or identity-theft report.
• Consider a credit freeze if other personal information was also exposed.

Date of Birth, Address or Other Personal Details

This information may be combined with information from public records or data breaches.

• Strengthen passwords and security questions.
• Avoid using facts such as birthdays, addresses, relatives, or pet names as security answers.
• Monitor financial, email, and social media accounts.
• Be alert for follow-up calls that use the disclosed details to appear legitimate.

If Someone Accessed Your Computer or Phone

If a scammer currently has remote access, disconnect the device from the internet. Turn off Wi-Fi, unplug the network cable, or power down the device if necessary.

Then:

• Do not continue using the device for banking, shopping, email, or password changes.
• Contact a trusted technology professional.
• Identify and remove remote-access software.
• Update the operating system and security software.
• Run a security scan.
• Review installed applications and browser extensions.
• Change important passwords from a different, secure device.
• Begin with email, banking, investment, and payment accounts.
• Enable multifactor authentication.
• Contact financial institutions.
• Review accounts for unauthorized activity.
• Check whether account recovery information was changed.
• Preserve relevant screenshots, messages, and software names before they are removed.

If the scammer accessed online banking while controlling the device, tell the bank that the person may have seen passwords, balances, account numbers, and transactions.

If Your Phone Number Was Taken Over

If your telephone suddenly loses service or you suspect a SIM-swap or account takeover:

• Contact your wireless provider immediately.
• Ask it to restore control of the number.
• Add or change the account PIN.
• Review account users and devices.
• Change important passwords after control is restored.
• Check email, banking, and other accounts for password-reset messages.
• Ask financial institutions whether accounts should be restricted temporarily.

If Your Medicare Number Was Shared

Contact Medicare if your number was provided to an unauthorized person or if you see a service, test, medical device, or charge you do not recognize.

• Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
• Review claims through your secure Medicare account.
• Compare claims with services you actually received.
• Contact your health or drug plan if it may be affected.
• Report suspected Medicare fraud.
• Report identity theft through IdentityTheft.gov if someone used your personal information.

Medicare provides instructions through Reporting Medicare Fraud and Abuse.

Do not provide your Medicare number to an unexpected caller offering equipment, testing, refunds, or a replacement card.

Protect Your Credit

If personal information was exposed, review your credit and consider a fraud alert or credit freeze.

Review Your Credit Reports

Use AnnualCreditReport.com, the federally authorized source for free credit reports.

Look for:

• Accounts you did not open
• Credit inquiries you do not recognize
• Incorrect addresses or employers
• Unexpected balances
• Collection accounts
• Changes to existing accounts

Credit Freeze

A credit freeze restricts access to your credit file and can make it harder for someone to open a new credit account in your name.

• A freeze is free.
• It does not affect your credit score.
• You must contact Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion separately.
• The freeze remains until you lift it.
• You can temporarily lift it when you need to apply for credit.

Fraud Alert

A fraud alert tells businesses to take additional steps to verify your identity before opening new credit.

• An initial fraud alert is free.
• You need to contact only one credit bureau; that bureau must notify the other two.
• An extended alert may be available after documented identity theft.

Review the FTC’s explanation of credit freezes and fraud alerts before deciding which protection fits your situation.

Preserve Evidence

Save information before deleting messages, closing accounts, or removing software.

Useful evidence includes:

• Screenshots
• Emails and text messages
• Social media messages
• Envelopes, letters, and package labels
• Caller ID information
• Telephone and callback numbers
• Voicemails
• Website addresses
• Usernames and profile names
• Names, titles, and aliases used
• Payment receipts
• Gift cards and activation receipts
• Bank and credit-card statements
• Wire-transfer records
• Cryptocurrency wallet addresses and transaction identifiers
• Dates and times
• Notes describing what was said and what actions were taken

Do not continue communicating with the scammer simply to gather more evidence. Your safety and financial security come first.

Watch for Recovery Scams

After a loss, another scammer may claim to be:

• A government investigator
• An attorney
• A recovery company
• A cryptocurrency specialist
• A bank employee
• An FTC or FBI representative
• Someone who has located your stolen money

The person may promise to recover funds in exchange for a fee, tax, deposit, or access to your accounts.

Do not pay anyone who unexpectedly offers to recover stolen money. Contact law enforcement or the organization directly using verified contact information.

Report What Happened

Depending on the circumstances, report the incident to:

• Pinehurst Police Department: 910-295-3141
• Federal Trade Commission
• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center
• IdentityTheft.gov
• Your bank, credit-card company, or payment provider
• Medicare, Social Security, or another affected agency

Call 911 if someone is in immediate danger or a crime is in progress.

There Is No Reason for Embarrassment

Being scammed is not a reason for embarrassment. Criminals use sophisticated technology and psychological pressure against people of every age and background. Reporting the incident may protect both you and others.

What matters now is taking the next appropriate step. Start with the organization that moved the money or controls the affected account, then notify law enforcement and the appropriate reporting agencies.