Fraud help in Brazil: take the first steps
A Pix request from a cloned social-media account, fake payment slip or forged supplier message may look like an ordinary transaction. If you paid or entered banking details on a suspicious page, contact your provider immediately and record exactly what happened. This fraud help guide for Brazil brings together practical steps and official resources so you can decide whom to contact and what information to prepare.
Start with the most immediate risk. If money or bank access is involved, contact your bank promptly. Keep the original messages and documents, and write down what happened while it is fresh in your mind. You can ask for help before you have gathered every piece of evidence.
Use the right reporting service
Brazil’s Civil Police reporting services are organised by state. Your payment provider handles urgent transaction disputes, including assessment of Pix MED requests, while Consumidor.gov.br supports eligible complaints to participating businesses. Start with the official reporting guidance for Brazil, then follow the relevant sections below for banking, identity protection and consumer complaints. Keep copies of reports and reference numbers so you can follow up consistently.
Check suspicious letters and payment requests
A real company name, familiar logo or official-looking document is not enough to establish authenticity. Read our guide to company letterhead security and impersonation scams, and learn how secure business communication can help organisations make correspondence easier to verify.
Contact the claimed sender through details you find independently before taking further action. Be cautious of unsolicited recovery offers that demand an advance payment or promise guaranteed results. For incidents involving another jurisdiction, visit the country-by-country Fraud Help directory.
1. Stop Further Losses
If someone is in immediate danger or urgent emergency assistance is needed, call 190 for urgent police assistance. Use the police reporting routes below for non-emergency complaints.
Stop communicating with the suspected scammer and do not send more money. Contact your bank immediately if money, card details or account access are involved. Save messages, payment records and suspicious documents. If someone has remote access to your device, disconnect it from the internet and contact your bank from another trusted device.
2. Contact Your Bank or Payment Provider
For suspected fraud involving Pix, immediately contest the transaction with your bank or payment provider and ask about the Mecanismo Especial de Devolução (MED). Follow the provider’s current app or support process. MED eligibility and recovery depend on the facts; it is not a guaranteed refund or a general solution for every commercial dispute.
Use your bank’s official app or a trusted telephone number. Explain whether a payment was unauthorised or you were deceived into approving it. Ask about securing cards and online banking, tracing transactions and any available recall or dispute process. Keep a written record of your notification and the bank’s response. Do not send money to a caller’s supposed “safe account”. Recovery depends on the circumstances and is not guaranteed.
Tell the bank which credentials or identification methods were exposed, whether you installed remote-access software and whether you approved any payment. Ask for a case reference and written instructions. If you disagree with its response, request its formal complaint procedure and the relevant dispute-resolution route.
3. Report the Fraud to Police
Register a Boletim de Ocorrência with the Civil Police in the relevant state. Online reporting availability and eligible incident types vary by state; use the official state police service or attend a station. São Paulo, for example, provides a Delegacia Digital. Keep the final report and check whether an online submission still needs police approval or additional information.
Prepare a short timeline, payment records, recipient account details, original messages, website addresses and copies of suspicious documents. Explain how the contact began and what money or information you shared. Keep the complaint reference and any instructions for providing additional evidence.
4. Report Cybercrime and Online Fraud
For a compromised social-media account or phishing incident, preserve the fraudulent profile, messages and payment requests. Use the platform’s official recovery process and report suspected crime to the relevant state Civil Police. The Ministry of Justice’s victim guides explain protective steps. Do not pay someone who demands a ransom to return an account.
Keep original evidence and use a trusted device to secure affected accounts. Do not send passwords, one-time codes or full payment-card details in an incident report.
5. Protect Your Identity
Notify every bank, lender, telecom provider or online platform where your identity was misused. Dispute unfamiliar accounts or debts in writing and keep the replies. Change compromised passwords from a trusted device, secure your email first and enable two-factor authentication. If an identity document is lost or stolen, contact its issuing authority about reporting, blocking or replacement.
Report suspected criminal identity misuse to police and list the affected accounts or contracts. Notify the issuer of any compromised digital identity or electronic signature. Keep unfamiliar credit notices and invoices, and dispute fraudulent agreements directly with the organisation concerned.
6. Protect Your Credit
Banco Central’s Registrato provides reports about matters including loans, banking relationships and Pix keys associated with you. Start from https://www.bcb.gov.br/meubc/faqs/p/o-que-e-registrato and follow the current login requirements. Review unfamiliar entries and contact the reporting institution. Reports have different update schedules and do not create a universal credit freeze.
7. Consumer-Protection Resources
Consumidor.gov.br supports complaints to participating companies. Check whether the business is registered and follow the submission requirements. For other consumer matters, ask the relevant local Procon about the correct route. A consumer complaint is separate from your police report and urgent bank action.
Consumidor.gov.br and local Procon services: https://www.gov.br/pt-br/servicos/reclamar-contra-servico-ou-produto-de-empresas-privadas
For a purchase dispute, keep the order confirmation, receipts, advertised terms and correspondence. Ask your payment provider about any available dispute or chargeback process without waiting for a regulator’s response. Recovery depends on the circumstances.
8. Employment and Immigration Fraud
Verify the employer through independently sourced contact details. Keep the job advertisement, offer letter, recruiter messages and payment requests. Report fraudulent adverts to the hosting platform. If you paid money or shared identity documents, contact your bank and police and follow the identity-protection steps above. For immigration claims, confirm the procedure and official fees with the responsible authority or consulate; a professional-looking letter does not prove that it is genuine.
Do not receive or forward money through your personal account for an unverified employer. For a claimed job or permit in Brazil, independently contact the employer and the responsible government authority or consulate. Preserve forged offers and payment requests for police.
Official Contacts and Telephone Numbers
Emergency assistance: 190 for urgent police assistance.
Police or formal complaint guidance: https://www.gov.br/mj/pt-br/acesso-a-informacao/acoes-e-programas/sofri-um-golpe-e-agora/cliquei-em-links
Cybercrime or technical incident guidance: https://www.gov.br/mj/pt-br/acesso-a-informacao/acoes-e-programas/sofri-um-golpe-e-agora/minha-conta-em-redes-socias-foi-invadida-ou-clonada
Consumidor.gov.br and local Procon services: https://www.gov.br/pt-br/servicos/reclamar-contra-servico-ou-produto-de-empresas-privadas
Report the Fraud
State Civil Police (Polícia Civil)
Official Sources
Received a suspicious business document?
Check whether a document issued through VerifiableLetter is authentic.
Important: This guide provides general information, not legal, financial or emergency advice. Procedures and contact details can change. Confirm requirements with the relevant authority. Reporting does not guarantee investigation, reimbursement or recovery.