Where to report a scam in Colombia and Latin America

Report a scam in three places, in this order: your bank or wallet if money is involved, the platform where it happened, and the police or prosecutor's office. The bank comes first because it's the only one that can sometimes stop the money. The police report comes next, and in Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, Peru and Chile you can start it online, for free, without a lawyer.

Before you report: gather the evidence

A report is only as useful as the details in it. Take ten minutes to collect them before you start, and before the scammer deletes the chat or the profile.

1. Screenshots of the conversation, with the date and the sender's number or username visible. Don't delete the chat, even if it's upsetting.
2. The scammer's identifiers: phone numbers, profile links, email addresses, the web address of the fake page, and the name on the account you paid.
3. Payment details: amount, date, time, the transaction or reference number, and the receiving account or phone number. Download the receipt from your bank app.
4. A short timeline in your own words: how they contacted you, what they said, what you did and when.
5. Your case numbers: the claim number your bank gave you and any report number from the platform.

Keep everything in one folder or email to yourself. You'll be asked for the same details several times.

First: the bank and the platform

If you paid or gave card details, call your bank or wallet before anything else, using the number on your card or in the official app. Ask them to block what needs blocking and to contact the receiving bank to freeze the money. This only works while the money is still in the receiving account, which is often a matter of minutes or hours. Write down the claim number.

Then report on the platform where the scam happened, because platforms can remove accounts much faster than the police can:

• WhatsApp: open the chat, tap the contact's name and choose Report. If your own account was stolen, register your number again on your phone to get a new code, which logs the thief out.
• Facebook, Instagram and marketplaces: report the profile, the post or the listing as a scam or as impersonation. Ask friends to report it too.
• Email: use the "Report phishing" or "Report spam" option instead of just deleting it.

Where to report, country by country

We link only to official channels. Offices and addresses change, so always reach them from the official site, never from a link in a message.

Colombia

• Police cybercrime centre (CAI Virtual): caivirtual.policia.gov.co has a chat with the police and a link to file your report online through ¡ADenunciar!, the joint police and Fiscalía system for cybercrime.
• Fiscalía, Denuncia Fácil: the Attorney General's online complaint form, open 24 hours. You can also call 122 from a mobile.
• Superintendencia Financiera: if your bank doesn't handle your fraud claim properly. It's usually faster to go to the bank or its financial consumer ombudsman first, but you can also complain to the Superintendencia directly.
• SIC or Superintendencia Financiera: if a company won't correct a debt or data reported in your name (habeas data). The SIC handles stores, phone companies and other businesses; the Superintendencia Financiera handles banks and wallets.
• ColCERT, the national cyber emergency team: forward phishing emails, or at least the fake page's address, to phishing-report@colcert.gov.co so it can be taken down.

Mexico

• 088: the National Guard's citizen line gives guidance to cybercrime victims on how to file a report.
• Mexico City Cyber Police (SSC): 55 5242 5100 extension 5086, or policia.cibernetica@ssc.cdmx.gob.mx, 24 hours.
• Mexico City prosecutor's Denuncia Digital: denunciadigital.cdmx.gob.mx accepts fraud reports online after a short registration. In other states, use your state prosecutor's office.
• CONDUSEF: its online complaint portal covers charges you don't recognize and banks that didn't solve your claim. Report to your bank first and keep the folio number it gives you.

Argentina

• Police: the national government's guide to reporting a computer crime says to file at the police station or reporting office for your address, and they are required to take it.
• UFECI, the prosecutors' specialized cybercrime unit: you can also report the case by email to denunciasufeci@mpf.gov.ar.
• Central Bank (BCRA): make a formal claim to your bank or wallet first. If you don't get a satisfactory answer within 10 business days, file a fraud claim with the BCRA.

Peru

• Central Única de Denuncias: the Interior Ministry's reporting centre takes cybercrime reports on the free line 1818, on its website and in its app. The police's high-tech crime division (DIVINDAT) investigates these cases, and any police station must also take your report.
• Ministerio Público: the prosecutor's office accepts criminal complaints online, free and without a lawyer.
• SBS: the banking regulator, if your bank breached its obligations with your claim. Claim to the bank first.

Chile

• PDI: file a report at any PDI unit. Its Cybercrime Brigade investigates online fraud, and you can write to cibercrimen@investigaciones.cl.
• Fiscalía: the online complaint works with ClaveÚnica, or a passport if you're abroad.
• CMF: the financial regulator, if your bank didn't solve your claim. Attach proof of what you already did with the bank.
• CSIRT Nacional: report phishing and other cyber incidents on its online form or by calling 1510.

The what to do if you were scammed or hacked tool lists all of these channels with their links. You choose your situation and your country, and it shows the steps for the first minutes and the next days, plus where to report. You don't enter any personal details.

What realistically happens after you report

• You get a case number. In Colombia, for example, ¡ADenunciar! decides within 24 hours whether the facts are a crime and assigns a number, and within five business days you get an email with the prosecutor assigned to the case. Keep that number: banks and regulators will ask for it.
• Investigations are slow. Many reports are used to connect cases and find the same scammer behind many victims. You may not hear anything for months.
• The money is the hard part. If you made the transfer yourself, the bank often isn't required to refund it. The best chance is a quick freeze in the receiving account. Charges you never authorized are more often reversed, depending on your bank and country.
• The regulator reviews how the bank handled your claim. It doesn't investigate the scammer.

One warning matters more than anything else in this guide: after you report, "recovery" agents, lawyers or hackers may contact you offering to get your money back for a fee. That's a second scam. Filing a report is free, and no police force or prosecutor asks you to pay to release your money.

Quick checklist

• I called my bank or wallet using the number on my card or in the official app.
• I saved screenshots, numbers, profile links and transaction ids.
• I reported the profile, number or listing on the platform.
• I filed a police or prosecutor's report and kept the number.
• I escalated to the financial regulator only after the bank's answer.
• I ignore anyone who offers to recover my money for a fee.

If you're not sure a message was a scam, paste it into the scam checker for a plain verdict. Don't paste passwords or card numbers into it.

Frequently asked questions

Is it worth reporting if I lost only a small amount?

Yes. Your bank may ask for the report number, and small reports help investigators connect cases where the same person scammed many people. It usually takes less than half an hour online.

Do I need a lawyer to report a scam?

No. In all five countries you can report for free and without a lawyer. Be suspicious of anyone who says you must pay to file or speed up a report.

The scammer is in another country. Where do I report?

Report in the country where you live and where your bank is. Your local police and prosecutors can ask other countries for help, and your bank handles the payment side.

Will the police get my money back?

Sometimes, but don't count on it. Money is recovered mostly when the bank freezes it quickly, which is why calling the bank comes before everything else.

Try it

• 1.2Scammed or hacked? What nowSteps for the first hours after a scam or a hack: a bad link, a shared code, a stolen WhatsApp, money sent.
• 1.1Is it a scam?Paste a message or link you received and see its warning signs: brand look-alikes, new domains, short links, scam wording.