A new FBI scam alert released on Friday warns that fraudsters – pretending to be from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) – are offering to help recover lost funds, but are stealing victims’ financial information instead.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed it has received over 100 reports of IC3 impersonation scams taking place between December 2023 and February 2025.
The scammers are said to often target individuals who are already associated with social networking groups or online forums geared towards victims of online financial fraud. At other times, scammers will often spoof authentic phone numbers and names or use fake credentials.
According to victim complaints, all the setups involve some sort of offer to help victims recover monies already lost in other scams, although the initial method of contact varies.
“Some individuals received an email or a phone call, while others were approached via social media or forums,” the public service announcement said.
In some cases, the scammers actually claim to have the missing funds in their possession.
In one example shared by the FBI, the scammer first created a fake female profile on social media and then used the profile to join an online financial fraud group, pretending to be a fellow victim.
Once established, the scammer suggested to victims in the group that they reach out to one of their contacts at the IC3 – the alleged "Chief Director" of IC3, a male persona with the name "Jaime Quin,” using the Telegram encrypted messaging app.
When the victim contacts the fake IC3 director, ‘Quin’ claims to have recovered their lost funds, and uses the scam to gain access to their financial information.
The FBI said the ongoing scheme not only deceives and defrauds the target but revictimizes them as well.
How to protect yourself from IC3 scams
Run by the FBI, the IC3 handles complaints covering an array of internet crimes, including fraud schemes such as identity theft, phishing, spam, reshipping, auction fraud, payment fraud, counterfeit goods, romance scams, and non-delivery of goods.
The FBI provides several tips to help protect victims against IC3 impersonation scams:
- Scammers will change aliases and tactics; however, the scheme generally remains the same.
- Never share sensitive information with people you have met only online or over the phone.
- Do not send money, gift cards, cryptocurrency, or other assets to people you do not know or have met only online or over the phone.
- The IC3 will not ask for payment to recover lost funds, nor will they refer a victim to a company requesting payment for recovering funds.
- The IC3 will never directly communicate with individuals via phone, email, social media, phone apps, or public forums.
Furthermore, the public should be aware that if additional information is required about a case, an FBI employee from a local field office or another law enforcement officer will contact the victim directly.
When reporting online fraud, the FBI advises gathering as much information as possible about the person or company that contacted you to provide to the IC3, including the methods of communication used and a detailed description of the interaction.
Additionally, information about the financial transaction itself is also important, such as “the date, type of payment, amount, account numbers involved, the name and address of the receiving financial institution, and receiving cryptocurrency addresses,” the FBI said.
To make an online fraud complaint or report other suspicious activity, you can contact the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.
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