🛡️ COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE: HOW TO REPORT ONLINE CRIMES & THREATS TO THE FBI
An In-Depth Step-by-Step Tutorial on Gathering Evidence, International Reporting, and Navigating Federal Outlets

1. Understanding FBI Jurisdiction & Foreign Offenders (When federal/international laws apply)
   
2. Phase 1: Critical Safety & Emergency Assessment
   
3. Phase 2: Evidence Collection & Documentation Checklist (Including international data)
   
4. Phase 3: Reporting Foreign Nationals & Cross-Border Cybercrime
   
5. Phase 4: Selecting the Right FBI Reporting Portal
   
6. Phase 5: Step-by-Step Submission Walkthrough
   
7. Phase 6: Post-Filing Procedures & International Next Steps
   

• Cross-Border Financial Crime: Foreign scams, international wire fraud, pig-butchering/crypto schemes, ransomware, or offshore extortion rings.
  
• International Cyberstalking & Extortion: Transnational sextortion, cross-border harassment, doxxing, or threats originating outside your home country.
  
• Global Child Exploitation: Online grooming, production, possession, or distribution of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) across international borders.
  
• National Security & Cyber Attacks: Foreign threat actors, state-sponsored hacking, international terrorism, or targeted attacks on infrastructure.
  

1. Call 911 (or your country's local emergency service) immediately.
   
2. Contact local law enforcement in the victim's jurisdiction.
   
3. Do not rely solely on online web forms for active emergencies, as submissions are processed systematically.
   

• User Identifiers: Usernames, display names, profile URLs, permanent platform IDs (e.g., Discord ID, Twitter/X numerical ID), email addresses, phone numbers (including country codes), or IP addresses.
  
• International Identifiers (For Foreign Nationals):
  • Language used in communications or region-specific slang.
    
  • Country codes on phone numbers (e.g., +44, +91, +234).
    
  • Foreign bank details, international IBAN/SWIFT codes, money transfer apps (e.g., Wise, Remitly, WorldRemit), or crypto wallet addresses.
    
  • Time zones or active hours indicated in chat timestamps.
    
• Screenshots & Logs: Capture full-screen images showing date, system clock, web address (URL), and surrounding context. Preserve raw email headers ("Show Original") to record routing IPs.
  

Quote:💡 Tip: Save all raw image files, exported chat logs, and PDFs into a structured folder alongside a text document listing all events chronologically with exact timestamps (note your time zone).

• FBI Legal Attaché (Legat) Offices: The FBI operates Legal Attaché offices in over 60 U.S. embassies worldwide. Reports submitted via U.S. portals are routed to the relevant overseas embassy office to coordinate with local foreign authorities.
  
• INTERPOL & Europol Integration: Federal complaints involving cross-border exploitation, financial scams, or cyber syndicates are shared with international police organizations (INTERPOL/Europol) to issue notices and execute international warrants.
  
• Non-U.S. Citizens Reporting Foreign Crimes: If you are a non-U.S. citizen located outside the U.S., you can still submit reports to the FBI's IC3 or FBI Legal Attaché if the victim, infrastructure, server, platform, or financial institution involved is based in the U.S.
  

• Known names, online handles, display names, and social media URLs.
  
• Known country of residence, city, or origin (if unknown, note "Foreign national - exact country unconfirmed").
  
• Phone numbers (include the international country code, e.g., +44, +234, +63).
  
• Foreign bank details, IBAN/SWIFT numbers, wire transfer routing numbers, or cryptocurrency wallet addresses.
  
• Select "Unknown" for mandatory fields where specific personal data is absent.
  

Quote:Example Structure:
- Timeline: "On September 3, 2026, at 14:00 UTC, user [Handle] contacted me..."
- Foreign Link: "The suspect operates from [Country/Region] based on phone country code (+XX) and requested transfer via [Foreign Payment System/Crypto Wallet]."
- Incident: "The subject attempted extortion demands claiming..."

• In Your Home Country: File a report with your local police and national cyber agency (e.g., Action Fraud in the UK, CAFC in Canada, ACSC in Australia). Provide them with your FBI IC3 Complaint ID to facilitate cross-agency collaboration.
  
• Platform Reporting: Report the offender's profile directly to the platform (Discord, Telegram, X, Meta) to preserve server logs under international preservation requests.
  

• If funds were wired internationally, contact your bank's fraud department immediately to request an international wire recall/SWIFT stop.
  
• Block the individual across all channels after securing all evidence and documentation.