Warning for people already affected
Recovery scams: the fraud after the fraud
You have been defrauded — and now someone gets in touch who wants to “recover” your money for a fee paid up front? Then there is a high probability you are being targeted a second time. This page explains how the scheme works, how to recognise it and how to verify any provider — expressly including us.
No cold calling · No fees before the initial assessment · No guarantee of success
The term
What is a recovery scam?
In short
A recovery scam is a second fraud built on the first. Perpetrators or imitators contact people who have already been defrauded, promise to recover the lost money, and demand payment in advance. The supposed recovery never happens.
The term and related schemes are explained in the glossary entry on recovery scams.
The scheme
How a recovery scam unfolds
- 01
Unsolicited contact with accurate details
A call or e-mail, often citing the platform name, the amount invested and the date of loss. The reason is sobering: data on victims is traded among perpetrators.
- 02
A false identity as proof of legitimacy
The caller claims to be from an authority, a law firm, a blockchain analysis company or a regulator. Websites, letterheads and registration numbers are copied from genuine organisations.
- 03
Advance payment, then more
“Processing fees”, “taxes”, “bonds” are demanded before any payout. Whoever pays receives fresh demands — until contact breaks off and that money is gone too.
Warning signs
Red flags at a glance
One of these features alone is reason enough to stop. Where several coincide, you are almost certainly looking at an attempted fraud.
A guarantee of success
Anyone who firmly assures you of repayment is buying your trust. Reputable legal work never comes with a guarantee of success — not in any case, ever.
Payment up front
“Processing fees”, “taxes”, “bonds” or “unlocking costs” before anything happens. The same pattern as the original fraud, one step later.
Contact only through messengers
WhatsApp or Telegram instead of a firm’s official channels, remote-access software on your computer, an e-mail address that does not match any real domain.
Pressure and urgency
Supposed deadlines: “the funds are only recoverable for another 48 hours”. Time pressure exists to prevent you from checking.
Payment in cryptocurrency
Payment in Bitcoin or via anonymous transfer services — chosen precisely because such payments are practically impossible to reverse.
No verifiable authorisation
No entry in the official register of lawyers, no legal notice with a verifiable business address, no named responsible person. Or the details are copied from a genuine firm.
Check rather than trust
How to verify any provider — including us
These four steps cost a few minutes and work for every provider. We name them deliberately: you should apply them to us as well. Trust is built on verifiability, not on promises.
- 01
Search the official register of lawyers
Every lawyer admitted in Germany is listed in the Bundesweites Amtliches Anwaltsverzeichnis. No entry under the stated name means no instruction.
- 02
Check the mandatory legal notice
Every provider addressing the German market must publish a legal notice (the German “Impressum”) with its name, a verifiable business address, an e-mail address and supervisory details. If any of that is missing or cannot be verified, stop there.
- 03
Consult the BaFin database and warnings
Financial services in Germany require authorisation. BaFin maintains a company database and publishes warnings about unauthorised offers.
- 04
Call back on the officially published number
Do not use the number you were given. Look up the firm independently and call that number — this alone defeats most impersonation attempts.
For comparison: our details
- Firm
- AC Anlegerschutz
- Address for service
- Steinhäuserstraße 20, 76135 Karlsruhe
- Look us up
- Register of lawyers · Legal notice · About the firm
The contrast
How we work instead
Every red flag above has a counterpart in how regulated legal work actually operates — these are the commitments you can hold us to.
- No guarantee of success
- Reputable legal work comes without guarantees. We tell you honestly which steps stand a chance in your case — and which do not.
- No cold calling
- We never contact fraud victims unsolicited. Anyone who calls you out of the blue promising to recover your money is very likely a fraudster themselves.
- Transparent costs
- Fees follow clear rules — the German statutory fee scale (RVG) or a written agreement — and are explained before any work begins. No hidden upfront charges.
- Confidential & GDPR-compliant
- Your information is treated confidentially and processed exclusively within the EU.
Act now
What to do if you have been contacted
Independent information on current fraud schemes is available from the German police crime-prevention service and the consumer advice centres.
- 01Hang up or do not reply — and do not call back on the number given in the call or chat.
- 02Pay nothing and hand over nothing: no copy of your ID, no account details, no remote access to your computer.
- 03Secure everything: phone number, e-mail address, chat history, payment demand, screenshots of the website.
- 04Already paid? Inform your bank or payment service provider immediately and have them check whether the payment can still be stopped or disputed.
- 05File a criminal complaint — at any police station or through the online reporting portal of your federal state. The recovery scam is a separate offence under § 263 StGB.
- 06Check the sender, not their claims: register of lawyers, legal notice, BaFin database — the four steps above.
Common questions
Recovery scams — questions we are often asked
Why does the caller know so much about my case?
Because data on fraud victims is traded among perpetrators and sold on for follow-up offences. Anyone who has already been harmed frequently appears on lists used deliberately for further attempts. Precise knowledge of your case is therefore not evidence of legitimacy — it is a clear warning sign.
I have already paid a recovery service — what now?
Make no further payments, secure all evidence (chats, e-mails, payment receipts, wallet addresses) and file a criminal complaint — the recovery scam is a separate fraud in its own right (§ 263 StGB). Whether civil claims can also be pursued depends on the individual case. That is exactly what we examine in a free initial assessment — openly and without any guarantee of success.
Do genuine law firms ever contact victims unsolicited?
No. Approaching people about a specific matter without being asked is not how regulated legal practice acquires clients in Germany. If you are contacted out of the blue about your fraud case, treat it as a warning sign regardless of how professional the caller sounds.
How do I tell a genuine offer from a dishonest one?
By the combination of unsolicited contact, firm assurances of an outcome, and payment up front. Reputable legal work gives no guarantee of success, does not demand “release fees”, and does not conduct business over messengers and crypto payments. Check every provider in the official register of lawyers and against their legal notice — if there is no entry, do not engage them.
Your next step
Speak to a firm you can verify
Check our details in the official register and in the legal notice — then tell us about your case. You will receive an honest assessment of your legal options, not a promise.
Free and without obligation. Costs only arise if you expressly instruct us afterwards — the fee under the RVG or a written fee agreement is discussed with you in advance. If you hold legal expenses insurance, we check the cover for you.
No guarantee of success — but a clear assessment. Your data is never passed on and is processed exclusively within the EU.
- 01You describe your case — online or by phone
- 02We get back to you promptly
- 03You receive an initial assessment — free and without obligation