Is an offer to help me recover money I already lost to a scam legit?
Almost certainly not. Recovery fraud, also called a reload scam, specifically targets people who have already been scammed by offering fake recovery services — and then taking more money.
Last reviewed: 10 June 2026
Explanation
After falling victim to a scam, many people search desperately for ways to recover their funds. Fraudsters monitor scam-related forums, social media posts, and even reports filed with authorities to identify these victims and approach them with recovery offers. They pose as lawyers, government recovery agencies, blockchain tracing firms, or cybercrime specialists.
The recovery service asks for an upfront fee, which it describes as a legal retainer, government filing charge, or tracing cost. After you pay, they invent additional charges — court costs, release fees, conversion fees — before eventually disappearing. In some cases they gather further personal and financial details that enable additional identity fraud.
No legitimate law firm or recovery specialist charges large upfront fees before achieving any results. Real cryptocurrency tracing firms do exist and may work on contingency or post-recovery fee arrangements, but they operate transparently with verifiable registration details and do not contact scam victims unsolicited.
If you want to pursue recovery, report to your national fraud authority and speak to a regulated solicitor or attorney through a referral from your local bar association — not through an unsolicited outreach.
Common red flags
- Contact you unsolicited after you posted about being scammed
- Promises specific recovery amounts or guarantees of success
- Requires large upfront fees before any work is demonstrated
- New fees keep appearing after the initial payment
- Claims to be a government agency but cannot be verified on official registries
- Communicates only through messaging apps with no verifiable office
What to do now
- Do not pay any upfront fee to any recovery service that contacted you unsolicited
- Report the original scam to your national fraud authority
- Consult a regulated solicitor or attorney through a verifiable bar association referral
- Contact your bank about any bank transfers that may still be recallable
- Report the recovery fraud separately — it is a distinct crime
- Seek support from scam victim advocacy organisations
Frequently asked questions
Are there any legitimate scam recovery services?
Legitimate options include your bank's fraud team, your national fraud reporting authority, regulated legal professionals, and in some countries specialist cybercrime investigators. None of them contact victims unsolicited.
Why do I keep getting contacted by recovery services after reporting a scam?
Fraudsters monitor complaint databases, online forums, and social media for scam reports to identify vulnerable targets. Being re-targeted after a scam is extremely common.