It already happened
I handed over or mailed cash, gold, or a card
Hand nothing to a courier. If one is at the door, call 911. If you mailed it, get the package stopped now.
No real bank, agency, or company sends a courier to collect cash, gold, or your card. A package still in the mail, or a pickup that hasn’t happened, can sometimes be stopped. Cash or gold already handed over usually can’t. A card can be canceled with one call.
If it’s happening now
A courier is on the way, or at the door. Don’t open the door. If they’re on the phone with you, hang up. Call 911 and say someone is coming to collect money for a scammer. Don’t hand anything over, even if the courier reads you the right code or dollar-bill serial number. The scammer gave that code to both of you.
The courier just left. Call 911 now. Give the car, the plate if you saw it, and which way it went.
The pickup is later, or they say they’ll be back for more. Keep the cash or gold. Call your local police today and tell them when the courier is due. They can be there only if they know. Then stop answering the scammer.
You’re at the bank or a gold dealer with them on the phone. Hang up before you take out or buy anything. Tell the teller or the clerk what the caller told you to do. A caller who tells you to keep it from the bank is the scam.
It’s packed but not mailed. Don’t send it. Put the cash back in the bank.
They’re on your computer. Hold the power button until it turns off, then use your phone. Someone is on the line or on my screen right now.
What to say
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Someone is coming to my house to pick up cash for a scammer. I haven't handed anything over. They're due at [time].
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I mailed cash to a scammer and it hasn't been delivered yet. I have the tracking number. What can you do to stop it?
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Someone pretending to be your fraud department sent a courier for my debit card, and I gave it to him. Please cancel it and tell me what's been charged. The card was taken from me by fraud, so I want those charges treated as unauthorized. I need a case number.
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A scammer got me to take out cash. I'd like that noted on my account, and I want to know if anything else has moved. I need a case number.
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Can you send me that decision in writing?
If something already left your hands
Stop answering the scammer, then make these calls today. Ask each one for a case number and write it down.
If they were ever on your computer, change your email and bank passwords from your phone or another device you trust, right after you call the bank. I let someone control my computer.
You mailed it
A package can sometimes be stopped before it’s delivered, and sooner is better. USPS can’t stop one once it’s out for delivery. You need the tracking number from your receipt.
U.S. Mail. Ask for the package back yourself first. On usps.com, open Receive, then Intercept a Package. Sign in or make an account and enter the tracking number. USPS charges $19.45 plus postage, and only if it stops the package. No tracking number, or the request won’t go through? Go straight to the next call.
Then call the Postal Inspection Service, report it, and ask what else can be done:
U.S. Postal Inspection Service
Mail fraud and mail theft, including cash or checks you mailed to a scammer.
FedEx or UPS. Go to the company’s website yourself, sign in, and open the tracking page for your tracking number. At FedEx, choose Manage Delivery, then Return to Shipper, with “suspected fraud” as the reason. At UPS, request a Delivery Intercept, then Return to Sender. UPS charges only if it works. Or call the number on the company’s own website.
Then tell your bank what happened, and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. If they first reached you online or through a pop-up, report it to the FBI at ic3.gov too.
You handed cash or gold to a courier
Once cash or gold is handed over, your bank can’t pull it back. Report it anyway.
- Your bank. Tell them a scammer had you take out the cash or buy the gold. Ask them to note it on your account and check nothing else has moved. Wired a dealer for gold that hasn’t arrived? Ask the bank to recall the wire, ask the dealer to stop the order, and file with the FBI at the same time. I sent a bank transfer, wire, or Zelle.
- Police. Call your local police and make a report. Describe the courier, the car and plate if you saw them, the time, and the code you were given.
- The FBI at ic3.gov. Include the name the caller used, every phone number, email, and website, the courier’s description, the code, and any gold dealer’s name and the account you paid.
- The FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
You handed over your card, or left it out for pickup
The card is gone, so call the number on your statement or in your bank’s app. Ask them to cancel it and tell you what’s been charged since. Tell them if you gave the PIN, and ask for a new card and PIN. A card cut in half still has to be canceled: the chip can still work.
Federal rules count charges by someone who got your card from you through fraud as unauthorized, even though you handed it over.
- Debit card. Report it within two business days of finding out, and the most you can owe is $50. After that, up to $500. Report within 60 days of the statement that shows the charges, or you can lose what’s taken after that. Carelessness with your PIN can’t be used to make you owe more.
- Credit card. The most you can owe for charges you didn’t make is $50. Put the dispute in writing so it arrives within 60 days of the statement that first shows them. I paid with a credit or debit card.
Gave them a password or a code for online banking too? I gave out a code, password, or card number.
If they say you authorized it
Cash or gold. The bank will probably treat it as authorized, since you took it out or bought it yourself, and there’s usually nothing for it to reverse. Cash handed over this way rarely comes back. If any does, it’s through a police or FBI case.
Card charges. Say the card was taken from you by fraud. If the answer is still no, ask for the decision in writing, then file a complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or call the CFPB at 855-411-2372.
What’s normal next
Keep the police report number. Your bank may ask for it. The scammers may call again: the same agent, a new “supervisor,” or someone offering to get your money back. Hang up on all of them.
That’s the urgent part. The rest can wait a few hours.
The rest
- Save the texts, call log, receipts, tracking number, and notes on the courier. Save evidence without spiraling.
- If you’re 60 or older, or helping someone who is, the National Elder Fraud Hotline gives you a case manager for the reports. Any age: the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline (877-908-3360). If the loss has you thinking about hurting yourself, call or text 988.
National Elder Fraud Hotline
Mon–Fri 10 a.m.–6 p.m. ET
Fraud against anyone 60 or older, reported by them or by family. Free. Run by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Anyone who offers to get your money back for a fee is running a second scam, including people who say they’re from the FBI, IC3, the FTC, or a law firm. Someone offers to get my money back.
What it looks like
Yesterday you handed a courier $22,000 in cash. You know now it was a scam. This text arrives.
Text Message
Today 8:02 AM
FTC Fraud Division - Case 26-118734
Your first deposit to the protected federal account is confirmed. The second collection is scheduled for TODAY at 1:30 PM.
The courier will read you serial number PL 47302915 B before you hand him the sealed package. Do not discuss this case with bank employees or family members. It is under federal seal.
- Agent R. Delgado
What do you do about the 1:30 pickup?
Show the answers
- Best move Call your local police now and show them this text Police can meet a courier only if they know one is coming, and you have the time and the code. In one FBI case, agents intercepted a courier sent to a victim's home. The FBI says it can step in when someone tells it in time.
- Okay Stay inside at 1:30 and block the number You lose nothing more. That matters most. But police can't catch the courier if they don't know one is coming.
- Wrong move Call or text that number to cancel the pickup That reaches the scammers. They cancel, the police lose their chance to meet the courier, and you get a new story. One to expect: someone who offers to get the $22,000 back for a fee.
Hand over nothing more, and tell the police when the courier is due. They can't be there if they don't know.
This morning a 'fraud agent' had you give a courier your debit card and its PIN. You've called the number on your bank statement.
(312) 555-0148
- Rep Fernmont Bank, this is Marcus. I've closed the card ending in 4471.
- Rep Since 9:30 I see two ATM withdrawals of $500 and a $2,416.90 purchase at a jewelry store.
- Rep You gave the card and the PIN to that person, so those count as authorized. I can't open a claim on them.
What do you say?
Show the answers
- Wrong move Okay. Just send me a new card A new card doesn't fix the charges. Without a claim, the bank keeps treating them as authorized. Carelessness with a PIN can't raise what you owe, so don't let the claim go.
- Best move Say the card was taken from you by fraud, and ask him to open an unauthorized-transfer claim with a case number Federal debit-card rules treat charges by someone who got your card from you through fraud as unauthorized, even though you handed it over. You reported it the same day, so the most you should owe is $50. If he still says no, ask for the decision in writing.
- Okay Ask for a supervisor right away Worth doing if he won't budge. Say the card was taken by fraud first. That's what changes the answer.
Handing over a card because someone lied to you isn't authorizing what they buy with it. Say it was taken by fraud and ask for a claim. Get any no in writing.
You mailed $9,000 in cash by Priority Mail this morning, then realized it was a scam. You typed usps.com yourself, signed in, and entered the tracking number.
USPS Package Intercept
Tracking Number: 9505 5162 4471 6027 3184 90
Status: In Transit to Next Facility
This item is eligible for Package Intercept.
Redirect to: Return to Sender
Estimated total: $19.45 intercept fee plus estimated postage.
Your card will be charged only if the item is intercepted. Package Intercept is not guaranteed.
Payment method: credit or debit card
It wants your card number and a fee to get your money back. What do you do?
Show the answers
- Best move Pay it and submit the request, then call the Postal Inspection Service too You opened usps.com yourself, and this is the Postal Service's own service for a package you sent. The $19.45 is charged only if it stops the package. Postal inspectors investigate mail fraud, so report it to them as well.
- Wrong move Close it. Anyone who wants a fee to get your money back is a scammer That rule is about people who contact you offering to recover money. Nobody contacted you here. Closing the page can cost you the package.
- Okay Skip the fee and call the Postal Inspection Service to stop it The FTC says the Postal Inspection Service can arrange an intercept too, for a fee. You're already on the page that starts one, and USPS charges only if it stops the package.
A stranger who contacts you offering to get your money back for a fee is a second scam. A USPS fee to stop your own package, on a site you typed in yourself, is not.
What they’ll ask for
Each of these is the scam.
“Take your savings out in cash, or buy gold. Our agent will collect it and keep it safe.” No bank or agency collects cash or gold to protect it. The FBI says the government and real businesses never ask you to buy gold.
“Cut your card in half, keep the chip, and leave it in your mailbox for our courier.” Your bank won’t send anyone for your card, whole or cut.
“Put the cash between the pages of a magazine and mail it to this address.” Nobody real asks you to mail cash.
“Your account is flagged. A cash pickup is required before you can withdraw.” No real platform sends a courier for cash before you can withdraw. After a pickup, your fake balance goes up. When you try to take money out, there’s a new “tax” or “penalty.”
“Don’t tell the bank or your family. The case is under federal seal.” Tell both. No real agency needs you to keep this from your bank or your family.
Sources
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center Scammers Use Couriers to Retrieve Cash and Precious Metals from Victims of Tech Support and Government Impersonation Scams
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center Scammers Use Couriers to Collect Cash in Cryptocurrency Investment Scams
- FBI FBI Boston Warns of Increase in Gold Bar and Bulk Cash Courier Scams
- U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Missouri Five Arrested, Accused of Targeting Elderly Victims in Tech Support Scam
- Washington State Department of Financial Institutions Warning: Scammers Are Sending Couriers to Your Door to Steal Cash
- FTC Real government agents aren't asking you to buy and deliver gold bars
- FTC What To Do if You Were Scammed (cash payments)
- FTC Putting cash in the mail
- U.S. Postal Service USPS Package Intercept
- FedEx How Do I Stop the Delivery of My FedEx Express Package?
- UPS UPS Delivery Intercept
- BECU Chip Card Scams: How to Protect Yourself
- FTC Lost or Stolen Credit, ATM, and Debit Cards
- CFPB Regulation E official interpretation, comment 2(m)-3: access device obtained through robbery or fraud
- CFPB Regulation E official interpretation, comment 6(b)-2: consumer negligence
- CFPB Regulation Z official interpretation, comment 12(b)(1)(ii)-4: credit card obtained through robbery or fraud
- CFPB How do I dispute a charge on my credit card bill?
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