If your cryptocurrency was stolen, filing a report with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is one of the most important steps you can take, and one of the most misunderstood.
This guide walks you through exactly what IC3 is, why it matters, what to include in your report, and what happens after you file.
What Is IC3, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center?
IC3, the Internet Crime Complaint Center, is the FBI's centralized intake system for internet-enabled crimes, including cryptocurrency theft. It is run by the FBI.
When you file at IC3, your complaint enters a federal database that investigators across multiple agencies can access. This matters because:
- Crypto theft cases often cross jurisdictions; your attacker may be operating from a different state or country
- IC3 analysts look for patterns across complaints, connecting individual thefts to larger criminal networks and ongoing investigations
- A documented IC3 complaint gives investigators the details they need to pursue exchange records, asset freezes and formal investigations through their own legal process
IC3 does not guarantee an investigation of your individual case. But filing a specific, well-documented complaint significantly increases the likelihood that your case gets attention, especially if it connects to a pattern already being investigated.
What You Need Before You File an IC3 Report
The difference between a report that gets actioned and one that gets filed and forgotten is specificity. IC3 receives hundreds of thousands of complaints. Reports with transaction-level detail stand out.
Before you go to ic3.gov, gather the following:
Transaction information:
- The theft transaction hash (TxID): the unique identifier for the transaction that drained your wallet. Find it on the block explorer for your chain (Etherscan for Ethereum, Arbiscan for Arbitrum, etc.)
- Your wallet address: the address that was drained
- The attacker's wallet address: the address that received your funds
- The token types and amounts stolen
- The dollar value of the loss at the time of theft: use the price at the exact block timestamp, not a current price
Timeline:
- The date and time of the theft (use the block timestamp; it's more precise than your memory)
- How you were led to the malicious site or transaction: the fake URL, the post that shared it, the DM that sent it
Platform information:
- The name of the fake site or malicious application
- The URL (even if the site is now down)
- Screenshots, if you have them
Your information:
- Your name and contact details
- Whether you've already filed with local law enforcement (and your report number, if so)
- Whether you've contacted the relevant exchanges
How to File an IC3 Crypto Complaint, Step by Step
Step 1: Go to IC3's cryptocurrency page
Type ic3.gov into your browser yourself (avoid sponsored search results) and open its Cryptocurrency page, which has a "File a Cryptocurrency Complaint" button. You can file for yourself or on behalf of someone else.
Step 2: Describe the type of crime
Choose the options closest to what happened. If a phishing link or fake website was involved, say so.
Step 3: Provide your personal information
IC3 collects your name, address, phone number, and email. This information is used to contact you if investigators need additional details. It is not published publicly.
Step 4: Describe the crime (this is the critical section)
This is where most victims undersell their report. Write a clear, factual, chronological account. Include:
- What you were doing when the theft occurred (e.g., "I clicked a link on X purporting to be a Flare Network governance vote")
- The exact URL of the malicious site
- What transaction you signed and what you believed you were doing
- The precise time the drain occurred (use the block timestamp)
- Your wallet address and the attacker's wallet address
- The theft transaction hash
- Every token drained and the amount
- The dollar value at time of theft
Then describe what happened to the funds after the theft, to the extent you can trace it. Even a single hop ("the funds were immediately transferred to wallet address 0x...") is valuable.
Step 5: Add financial transaction details
IC3 has a section specifically for financial transaction information. Enter:
- The cryptocurrency type (ETH, BTC, USDC, etc.)
- The amount
- The transaction hash
- The destination address
If funds moved to multiple addresses, list each one.
Step 6: Submit and save your confirmation
After submitting, you'll receive a complaint reference number. Save this immediately. You'll need it when contacting exchanges, law enforcement, and forensic services. Write it down somewhere you won't lose it.
What Happens After You File an IC3 Report?
IC3 itself won't contact you with updates. Its FAQ says: "You will not hear from the IC3." Don't interpret silence as inaction.
Here's what actually happens with your report:
Analyst review. IC3 says each complaint is reviewed by an analyst and forwarded to law enforcement and partner agencies as appropriate. Transaction hashes, wallet addresses and documented dollar values give the analyst and the receiving agency far more to work with than a vague description.
Connecting cases. Specific details, such as the scammer's wallet addresses and websites, are what allow a report to be linked to other complaints about the same people. That can happen without you being told.
Investigation is up to the receiving agency. IC3 does not investigate complaints itself. Whether a case is investigated or prosecuted is at the discretion of the agency that receives it, and IC3 does not publish how cases are selected.
Other agencies. Because complaints are forwarded to partner agencies as appropriate, your case may be picked up by an agency other than the FBI.
What you can do to accelerate it. The most effective thing you can do after filing IC3 is to bring a completed forensic case file to your local FBI field office or local law enforcement and ask them to reference your IC3 complaint number. Showing up in person with a documented forensic trace, not just a complaint number, is what moves cases from the database to an investigator's desk.
IC3 or Local Police? File With Both
IC3 and your local police or sheriff's office serve different purposes. File both.
IC3 gives your case access to federal investigative resources, cross-jurisdictional reach, and the database infrastructure to connect your case to larger patterns.
Local law enforcement gives you a local case number (which most exchanges require before acting on freeze requests), an assigned investigator you can follow up with, and the local legal mechanism for emergency asset preservation orders.
If your local department has limited crypto experience (which is common), a ChainWatch forensic case file is designed to bridge that gap. Investigators don't need to know how to trace blockchain transactions themselves when you arrive with a complete, documented case file.
Other Agencies to Report Crypto Fraud To
Depending on the nature of your theft, additional reporting options include:
FTC (ReportFraud.ftc.gov): For scam-related theft, particularly pig butchering schemes and investment fraud.
CFTC (cftc.gov/complaint): For commodity-related crypto fraud.
Your state attorney general: Many states have financial crimes units that handle crypto theft. Virginia's AG office, for example, has an active consumer protection division.
FinCEN (fincen.gov): For suspected money laundering.
Filing with multiple agencies costs you nothing and increases the surface area for your case to connect with an active investigation.
The Bottom Line
Filing at IC3 alone is not enough to recover your funds. But not filing is a guaranteed dead end.
A specific, documented IC3 complaint is the starting point for everything else: exchange freeze requests, court orders, subpoenas, restitution. It takes 20 minutes to do correctly. Do it within the first 24 hours.
Then get a forensic trace. The IC3 complaint tells law enforcement what happened. The forensic trace shows them where the money went, and gives them the evidence to act.
Reporting to IC3: common questions
Will the FBI contact me after I file an IC3 report?
Not from IC3 itself. IC3’s FAQ says: “You will not hear from the IC3. The IC3 does not conduct investigations and, therefore, is not able to provide the investigative status of a previously filed complaint.” Complaints are reviewed and forwarded to law enforcement and partner agencies, and any investigation is up to them, so an agency that picks up your case may contact you. Anyone who calls or messages claiming to be from IC3 is not: IC3 says it never contacts individuals directly.
Can I file an IC3 report for someone else, like an elderly parent?
Yes. IC3 says you “may also file on behalf of another person you believe has been affected by a cyber-enabled crime.” For people 60 and older, the DOJ National Elder Fraud Hotline (1-833-372-8311) can also help.
What should I include in an IC3 report about crypto?
IC3’s cryptocurrency page asks for the crypto addresses, the amounts and types of crypto, transaction hashes, and the dates and times of the transactions, plus how you met the scammer, the platforms you used to communicate, any websites involved, and phone numbers or other identifiers. That page has its own “File a Cryptocurrency Complaint” button.
Will IC3 get my money back?
IC3 doesn’t investigate or recover funds itself. It passes complaints to agencies that can. It also says it “will never ask for payment to recover lost funds.” Money comes back, when it does, through freezes, seizures, court orders or restitution, and a detailed report helps your case be connected to those. See also how freezes work and bank refunds after a scam.
Should I report to IC3, the FTC or my local police?
All three. IC3 routes your case to federal and partner agencies, the FTC (ReportFraud.ftc.gov) shares fraud reports with law enforcement, and a local police report gives you a case number that exchanges, banks and ATM operators may ask for.
ChainWatch provides forensic response and reporting services for cryptocurrency theft victims. We do not guarantee fund recovery. ChainWatch is not a law firm. All case data is kept strictly confidential.
Sources
- ic3.gov/CrimeInfo/Cryptocurrency
- ic3.gov/Home/FAQ
- ic3.gov/PSA/2026/PSA260720
- ovc.ojp.gov/program/stop-elder-fraud/providing-help-restoring-hope
The information on this page was checked against the sources listed in September 2026. Laws, agency guidance, company policies and contact details change, so please verify the current information with the original source before you act.