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How to report stolen crypto to an exchange, and what it can actually do
If your crypto was stolen, one of the few actions that can actually freeze funds is reporting it to the exchange the money reaches, fast. Blockchain transactions cannot be reversed, but when stolen funds land at an exchange, that exchange can sometimes freeze the account holding them, usually once law enforcement is involved. This guide explains when reporting to an exchange helps, exactly what to send, what an exchange can and cannot do, and why the first hours matter most.
There are two different situations people mean by reporting theft to an exchange, and they need different actions. One is that your own exchange account was broken into. The other is that funds stolen from your wallet are moving through an exchange you do not control. This guide covers both, because the steps and the realistic outcomes are not the same.
First, which situation are you in?
Your own account was compromised. Someone accessed your exchange account and withdrew or traded your funds. Here you contact your exchange's support and security team immediately to lock the account and stop further loss.
Stolen funds are moving to another exchange. Your self-custody wallet was drained, and tracing shows the funds heading to a specific exchange. Here the goal is to get that exchange to freeze the receiving account, which almost always requires law enforcement. Our guide on when stolen crypto reaches an exchange covers this choke point in detail.
If your own account was compromised
Speed limits the damage. In rough order:
- Sign in and lock down, if you still can. Change the password, revoke active sessions and API keys, and turn on or reset app-based two-factor authentication. Remove any withdrawal address or auto-withdrawal rule you did not set.
- Contact the exchange through the app or its official site, not a link from a message. Report the account as compromised and ask them to freeze withdrawals while you secure it. Reaching real support matters, because fake "support" is itself a scam, as our guide on fake support accounts explains.
- Preserve the evidence: transaction IDs, the withdrawal addresses, amounts, timestamps, and any unfamiliar logins or emails.
- Report to law enforcement and your national fraud service, and keep the case reference.
If stolen funds are heading to another exchange
You generally cannot get an exchange to freeze a stranger's account on your say-so. What works is giving law enforcement what they need to ask the exchange through legal process, quickly.
- Capture the trail now. The transaction hashes, the thief's addresses, the receiving exchange if tracing identifies it, amounts, and timestamps. Our evidence checklist lists what to keep.
- File a police report and a report with your national fraud or cybercrime service, and get a case or reference number. In the US that is the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov.
- Notify the receiving exchange's compliance or fraud channel that stolen funds have reached them, referencing your case number. Many exchanges act on a clear report plus law-enforcement contact, but the freeze and any return run through that legal process, not through you.
- Move fast. Once funds are withdrawn, swapped, or cashed out, the window to freeze them closes.
What an exchange can and cannot do
It can, in the right circumstances: lock or freeze an account, preserve records, and respond to a law-enforcement request or court order. If the stolen funds are a stablecoin, the issuer may also be able to freeze those tokens, which is separate from the exchange.
It cannot: reverse a blockchain transaction, freeze a stranger's account simply because you asked, guarantee a freeze or a return, or act instantly. And if funds have already left or been cashed out, there may be nothing at that exchange to freeze.
Anyone outside the exchange who guarantees to recover your funds for an upfront fee is running a recovery scam, not helping you.
What to send, in one place
Have this ready whenever you contact an exchange or file a report:
- Your transaction IDs (hashes) for the theft
- The addresses the funds moved to, and the receiving exchange if known
- Amounts and asset types, with dates and times
- For your own account: the unauthorized logins, emails, or device changes you noticed
- Your police or fraud-service case number, once you have one
Red flags while you report
- Any "exchange support" that contacted you first, or that you reached through a link in a message
- A request for your seed phrase, private keys, or a one-time code to "verify" or "restore" your account
- An offer to speed up or guarantee a freeze or recovery for a fee
- Pressure to move your remaining funds to a wallet or address someone gives you
What this guide cannot do
It cannot promise a freeze or a return, because those depend on where the funds went, how fast you acted, and law enforcement. What it can do is point you at the one action with real leverage, reporting to the right exchange quickly and through the proper channel, and make sure you have what that channel needs.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice.
Use Chain Pursuit's free tools to understand your options and preserve evidence. Never share your seed phrase, private keys, passwords, or one-time codes with anyone.
Sources
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center. https://www.ic3.gov, the US channel for reporting crypto theft and fraud, and the route through which law enforcement can engage exchanges.
Federal Trade Commission, What To Know About Cryptocurrency and Scams. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/what-know-about-cryptocurrency-and-scams, on the finality of crypto transfers and the absence of chargeback-style reversals.
Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 Internet Crime Report. https://www.ic3.gov/AnnualReport/Reports/2025_IC3Report.pdf, on crypto theft reporting and outcomes.
The exchange and stablecoin freeze mechanics described here are consistent across the sources above and our own reviewed guides. Reviewed quarterly.
Frequently asked questions
Can an exchange get my stolen crypto back?
Sometimes, and only in part. If stolen funds reach an exchange and have not been moved on, that exchange can sometimes freeze the account holding them, usually once law enforcement is involved. It cannot reverse the blockchain transaction or guarantee a return. Reporting fast, with a police case number, gives the best chance.
My exchange account was hacked. What do I do first?
If you can still sign in, change the password, revoke active sessions and API keys, reset app-based two-factor authentication, and remove any withdrawal address you did not set. Then contact the exchange through its official app or site, report the account compromised, and ask them to freeze withdrawals. Preserve all the details and report to law enforcement.
Stolen funds are moving to a big exchange. Can I make them freeze the account?
Not on your own say-so. Exchanges freeze a stranger's account through legal process, so file a police and fraud-service report, get a case number, and notify the receiving exchange's fraud or compliance channel referencing it. Move quickly, because the window closes once funds are withdrawn or cashed out.
How fast do I need to act?
As fast as possible. Freezing only works while the funds still sit at the exchange. Once they are withdrawn, swapped into another asset, or cashed out, there may be nothing left to freeze. The first hours after a theft are the most valuable.
Will the exchange ask for my seed phrase or password to help?
No. No legitimate exchange or its support asks for your seed phrase, private keys, or a one-time code. Any such request is a scam, including fake "support" that contacts you first or that you reached through a link. Reach support only from inside the official app.
Someone offered to recover my funds from the exchange for a fee. Is that legitimate?
No. Offers to recover funds for an upfront fee, especially ones that contact you after a theft, are recovery scams. Real reporting through the exchange and law enforcement does not require you to pay a third party, and no one can honestly guarantee a return.
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