First: did you lose money or hand over details?

If yes, call your bank or card issuer before anything else, on the number printed on your card. A payment that has not yet left can sometimes be stopped, and the order of calls by payment type is on gave a scammer your details or money. Reporting comes second; it helps others and builds the record your bank and the police may ask for.

United Kingdom

What happened	Where to report	Source
Suspicious email	Forward it to report@phishing.gov.uk	NCSC
Scam text	Forward it to 7726, free on most networks	NCSC
Money or details lost (England, Wales, Northern Ireland)	Report Fraud, online or on 0300 123 2040	NCSC
Money or details lost (Scotland)	Police Scotland on 101	NCSC

The NCSC acts on every email it receives and can have scam websites taken down, but it cannot reply with the outcome. Ordinary spam does not need forwarding (NCSC).

Forwarding a text to 7726. Note the sender's number first. On iPhone: press and hold the message, More, select it, tap the arrow, enter 7726. On Android: press and hold, the three dots, Forward, enter 7726 (NCSC).

United States

What happened	Where to report	Source
Phishing email	Forward it to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, reportphishing@apwg.org	FTC
Scam text	Forward it to SPAM (7726), or use your phone's report-junk option	FTC
Any scam or phishing attempt	ReportFraud.ftc.gov	FTC
Personal data taken (for example a Social Security number)	IdentityTheft.gov	FTC
Fake USPS text	Email the USPIS with a screenshot; details on the toll and parcel page	USPIS

The message pretends to be a company

Many companies take reports of messages that imitate them. Apple, for example, asks for suspicious messages claiming to be from Apple to be forwarded to its own reporting address, listed on its page (Apple). Look for a "report phishing" page on the real company's site, reached by typing its address yourself.

Elsewhere

Most countries run a national cybercrime or consumer fraud service, and many mobile networks accept forwarded scam texts. Search for your national police or consumer authority by typing its address yourself rather than following a link in any message.

Before you forward

Do not reply to the sender and do not tap anything in the message while forwarding it.
A screenshot works when forwarding is not possible.
Keep the original until your bank or the police no longer need it.

Common questions

Will I hear back? Usually not. The NCSC says it cannot reply with the outcome of a report (NCSC).

Is it worth reporting if I did not fall for it? Yes. Reports are how scam sites get taken down; the NCSC counts 454.8 thousand scam web addresses removed by July 2026 (NCSC).

Someone offers to recover my money for a fee. Report that too? Yes: it is a second scam. The FTC says real agencies never charge to help you get a refund (FTC).