How to Spot Fake Recovery Agents

Why victims get targeted twice

Fraud operations keep detailed records of the people they've stolen from, and those lists are traded between criminal groups as "sucker lists". A victim who has already sent money once — and who is now desperate to get it back — is the most valuable lead in the fraud economy. Often the "recovery agent" who contacts you is connected to the very group that took your money, because they know exactly how much you lost and how.

The seven warning signs

1. They contacted you first. Legitimate restitution firms do not cold-call, cold-email, or message fraud victims on WhatsApp or Telegram. If they found you, ask yourself how — the honest answer is usually a purchased victim list.
2. They demand an upfront fee. Advance "processing fees", "legal deposits", "tax clearances", or "unlocking fees" are the core of recovery fraud. The moment money must flow from you before anything is recovered, walk away.
3. They guarantee recovery. No honest professional can guarantee the return of stolen funds. Guarantees, fixed timelines ("your money in 14 days"), and screenshots of supposedly recovered sums are sales theater.
4. They claim your money is "found" and waiting. A classic: your funds have been "located" or "frozen on an account in your name", and only a small payment stands between you and the release. There is no waiting account.
5. They ask to be paid in crypto or gift cards. No regulated firm invoices in Bitcoin, USDT, or iTunes cards. These channels are chosen because they're untraceable.
6. They impersonate authority. Fake regulators, fake Interpol officers, fake bank compliance departments. Real authorities never charge fees to return money and never make first contact through messaging apps.
7. They pressure you to keep it secret. "Don't tell your bank or the police, it will interfere with the operation." Legitimate work welcomes scrutiny; fraud requires silence.

How legitimate restitution services work

Contrast the list above with how a genuine claims process operates:

You approach them, not the other way around.
The case assessment is free, and fees are contingent — a pre-agreed share of funds actually returned, in writing, before any work begins.
They have a verifiable legal entity, a physical address, and a track record you can check independently.
They tell you when a case is weak, including when the answer is "your best route is your bank's complaints process, which is free".
They encourage you to report to police and regulators — official reports strengthen a claim rather than threatening it.
Payouts go directly to the verified victim's own bank account, never through intermediaries, "escrow agents", or crypto wallets.

Quick verification checklist

Before engaging anyone who offers to recover your money:

Search the company name together with the words "scam", "review", and "warning".
Check the firm against your financial regulator's warning list — most regulators publish one.
Verify the legal entity in the official company register of the country they claim to operate from.
Call the company through the number on its official website — not the number that contacted you.
Ask for the fee agreement in writing before sharing any documents. Refusal is your answer.
Never share passwords, seed phrases, or remote access to your device. No legitimate service needs them.

If you've already paid a fake recovery agent

Treat it as a fresh fraud case: stop all further payments, gather the evidence, and report it to your bank and the police — the same first steps as for the original scam. Our 48-hour checklist applies in full, and if the payment came from your bank account, review your refund rights.

Enlow never makes unsolicited contact, never charges upfront fees, and pays restitution only to the verified victim's own account. If someone claiming to be us contacted you out of the blue, it wasn't us — report it to our team. To start a genuine claim, register here.