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Is this really the police, the FBI, or a government agency?
If someone claiming to be from the FBI, the police, or a government agency contacts you out of the blue and asks for money, treat it as an impersonation scam until you have proven otherwise. Real agencies do not cold-call or message you to collect a payment, and they never ask for cryptocurrency, gift cards, or a wire to release funds or settle a case. Verify by contacting the agency yourself, through details you find, not the ones they gave you.
Who this is for
This guide is for anyone who has been contacted by someone claiming to represent a government body or law enforcement, and asked to pay, confirm details, or move money. It covers the agencies most often impersonated, how the approach works, and the one habit that defeats almost all of it: verifying the contact yourself before you act.
The short answer
A genuine agency does not initiate contact to collect money. It does not call, email, text, or message you on social media demanding a payment, a fee, or a transfer to "release" funds, clear a warrant, or settle a case. And no real agency asks to be paid in cryptocurrency, gift cards, or a wire transfer. If any of that is happening, you are almost certainly dealing with an impersonator, regardless of how official the caller ID, the logo, or the letterhead looks.
The agencies scammers impersonate
The uniform changes; the structure does not. The most common disguises:
The FBI or IC3. Scammers pose as agents of the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, often to target people who have already been defrauded, claiming they can recover the lost money. The FBI has warned about this directly. In one documented variant, fake personas join victim-support groups posing as fellow victims and steer people toward a person calling himself the IC3 "Chief Director" on a messaging app, who then asks for financial details under the guise of recovering funds. The FBI received more than 100 reports of IC3 impersonation between December 2023 and February 2025.
The police or a court. A caller says there is a warrant for your arrest, a missed jury summons, or an investigation in your name, and that a payment will make it go away. Courts and police do not take payment by phone to cancel a warrant.
A tax or benefits agency. A message claims you owe back tax, or that a refund or benefit is held pending a fee. Tax authorities communicate through official mail and secure accounts, not demands for gift cards.
A regulator or "fraud department." The caller claims to be protecting your money by moving it to a "safe account," or says a payment releases funds a regulator has recovered on your behalf. No regulator does either.
Across all of these, cryptocurrency has become a payment of choice for the scammer precisely because it is fast and hard to reverse.
Why the pressure works
Impersonation scams run on two levers: authority and fear. A badge, a case number, and the name of a real agency borrow instant credibility, and the threat of arrest, a frozen account, or a lost refund creates urgency that short-circuits careful thinking. The caller's goal is to keep you inside the conversation long enough to act before you check.
This is also big business. In 2025, people in the US reported losing about 3.5 billion dollars to imposter scams of all kinds, with roughly 920 million dollars of that going to government impersonators specifically, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Imposter scams were the single largest category of fraud report that year.
The recovery-scam overlap
If you have already lost money once, you are a specific target for a second approach dressed as official help. A message arrives saying a case has been opened in your name, your funds have been located, and a fee or a verification payment will release them. This is the recovery scam wearing a government uniform, and the FBI has named it plainly: the claim of recovered money is a ruse to revictimize people who have already been scammed.
The IC3 is explicit about its own conduct, and these two rules alone defeat the whole category: it will never contact you directly to recover funds, and it will never charge a fee to do so, nor refer you to a company that will. Our guides on spotting a crypto recovery scam and what to do after a recovery firm contacts you cover this second wave in full.
How to verify, in four steps
The method is the same whoever the caller claims to be. It works because an impersonator controls only the channel they reached you on. Step outside that channel and the illusion has nothing to stand on.
1. Assume impersonation if the contact was unsolicited. Real agencies rarely initiate contact this way, and never to collect a payment.
2. Do not use the link, number, or app they gave you. A spoofed number and a convincing site both lead back to the scammer. The channel they chose is part of the trick.
3. Find the agency yourself. Search for its official site, which in the US ends in .gov, and use the contact details published there. Type the address in directly rather than following a search ad.
4. Contact them on the details you found, and ask whether any case exists. An honest matter survives this. A fabricated one evaporates.
If you are 60 or older and in the US and need help reporting, the Department of Justice runs an Elder Justice Hotline at 1-833-372-8311.
Red flags
- Unsolicited contact from an "agency" by phone, email, text, or social media
- A demand for payment to cancel a warrant, settle a case, or release funds
- A request for cryptocurrency, gift cards, or a wire transfer
- Pressure to act immediately, or to keep the matter secret
- An instruction to move your money to a "safe" or "government" account
- A caller who discourages you from hanging up or verifying independently
- A case said to be "already open in your name" that you never initiated
- A link or phone number supplied by the caller, in place of an official register
What this guide cannot do
It cannot confirm whether a specific caller is genuine, and it cannot tell you that any particular case does or does not exist. What it can do is give you the one move that settles it safely: end the contact, find the agency yourself, and ask them directly. Nothing is lost by verifying, and a real agency will expect you to. If you have already paid or shared details, treat it as you would any fraud, secure your accounts starting with your email, preserve what you have, and report it.
This is general information, not legal advice, and procedures vary by country and agency.
Use Chain Pursuit's free tools to understand your options and preserve evidence. Never send money or share account details with someone who contacted you unsolicited, and never share your seed phrase or private keys with anyone.
Sources
Internet Crime Complaint Center (FBI), IC3 Impersonation Scam, alert I-041825-PSA, 18 April 2025. https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2025/PSA250418, on impersonation of IC3 staff, the recovery ruse, more than 100 reports between December 2023 and February 2025, and the guidance that IC3 never contacts people directly or charges a fee.
Federal Trade Commission, FTC data show people reported losing $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025, 15 June 2026. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2026/06/ftc-data-show-people-reported-losing-3-point-5-billion-imposter-scams-2025, for the 3.5 billion dollar total and the roughly 920 million dollars attributed to government impersonation.
US Department of Justice, Elder Justice Initiative, National Elder Fraud Hotline, 1-833-372-8311. https://ovc.ojp.gov/program/stop-elder-fraud, support for victims aged 60 and older.
Figures are as reported by the cited agencies for the stated periods. Reviewed quarterly.
Frequently asked questions
The FBI called me and said I need to pay to clear my name. Is that real?
No. The FBI does not call people to demand payment, and it never asks for cryptocurrency, gift cards, or a wire transfer. Its IC3 division states that it never contacts people directly to recover funds and never charges a fee. Hang up, find the FBI's official contact details yourself, and verify.
The caller ID showed the actual police number. Doesn't that prove it is them?
No. Caller ID can be spoofed to display any number, including a real agency line. Treat the displayed number as unverified. Hang up and call the agency back on a number you find independently, not the one that called you.
They said a payment will release funds the government recovered for me. Is that how it works?
No. Agencies do not charge a fee to release recovered money, and the claim that your money has been found is a common ruse to target people who were already scammed. Any request for an upfront payment to release funds is the scam itself.
Why would a government impersonator want to be paid in crypto?
Because cryptocurrency transfers are fast and difficult to reverse, which suits a scammer. A genuine agency has no reason to request crypto, gift cards, or a wire, so that request alone is a reliable warning sign.
They knew my name, address, and that I had been scammed before. How?
Personal details are bought, leaked, and traded between fraud operations, and people who have reported a loss are specifically targeted for a follow-up. Knowing details about you is not proof of legitimacy; it is often a sign you are on a victim list.
How do I check whether a case really exists?
Contact the agency yourself using details from its official site, which in the US ends in .gov, rather than any link or number the caller gave you. Ask directly whether a case or matter exists in your name. A real one can be confirmed through official channels.
I already paid an impersonator. What should I do now?
Stop any further payments, because more will be demanded and none completes the process. If you shared passwords or codes, change them and secure your email first. Preserve all messages and payment records, then report it through your national fraud channel, which in the US is ic3.gov.
Can the police or FBI ever contact me directly?
They can, usually through a local field office and typically about a matter you already know of, but not to demand payment by phone or message. If contact is unsolicited and involves money, verify it independently before doing anything.
I am helping an older relative who was targeted. Is there dedicated support?
Yes. In the US, the Department of Justice runs a National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-372-8311 that helps people aged 60 and older report fraud and find resources. Our guide on helping a family member who was scammed covers the wider steps.
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