Reporting a fake shop: order of steps, offices, records

The goods do not arrive, the shop stops replying, and it slowly becomes clear that it was a fake shop. Now the order of steps matters. Police and consumer advice centres agree: first the bank or payment service, then the evidence, then the police report. Only after that come notifications to offices that can block the shop or warn others.

Step 1: bank or payment service

The consumer advice centre of Lower Saxony writes: “Inform your bank, your credit card provider or the payment service you used immediately.” The Lower Bavaria police advise asking the bank without delay whether the payment can be reversed. What is then possible depends on the payment method.

• Bank transfer. Once the money has reached the payee, the bank can no longer reverse the transfer. According to the consumer advice centre, even a quick call often does not help because many transfers are booked in real time. Ask the bank for a recall anyway. More under Recalling a bank transfer.
• Direct debit. Under Section 675x of the German Civil Code you can reverse a SEPA core direct debit without giving reasons within eight weeks of the debit. See Reversing a direct debit.
• Credit card. Contact the bank that issued your card and request a chargeback. See Credit card: chargeback.
• PayPal. According to PayPal, you must report the dispute within 180 days of the payment date. After that, you and the seller have 20 days to find a solution. Buyer Protection only applies to payments for goods and services. See PayPal Buyer Protection.

If you do not know which deadline applies to you, Getting money back lists the deadlines per payment method.

Step 2: secure the evidence

Fake shops often disappear quickly. Secure the evidence before the page goes offline. The consumer advice centre lists order confirmation, purchase contract, emails and screenshots of the offer. Add the bank statement showing the payment and all messenger messages.

• The shop page. Screenshots of the home page, product page, legal notice, terms and payment page, with the address bar visible.
• The order. Order confirmation, invoice, payment request with payee name and account number.
• The payment. Bank statement or payment receipt with date and amount.
• The communication. Original emails, chat histories, phone numbers.

How to secure screenshots and emails so that your bank and the police can work with them is explained under Securing evidence.

Step 3: file a police report

A fake shop is fraud under Section 263 of the German Criminal Code. In Germany you can file the report online. The state police forces run a joint portal for this with a separate fraud section. No login is required. You upload evidence as attachments at the end and receive a confirmation by email. The address for your state and the process in detail are under Reporting offices. In case of violence or threats, call the emergency number 110.

A report is worthwhile even if the money is unlikely to come back. The Lower Bavaria police advise filing a report without delay using the secured records. With the report, the police have the evidence to investigate the shop and the receiving account.

Austria and Switzerland

In Austria, according to the Federal Criminal Police Office, online reports are currently only possible for theft. For fraud, go to a police station with official photo ID. In Switzerland you file a criminal complaint with the local police. Some cantons offer Suisse ePolice for this. The pages Reporting office Austria and Reporting office Switzerland summarise the routes.

Step 4: report the shop

Once your bank and the police have been informed, you can make sure others are warned. These notifications also work without a loss, for example if a shop looks suspicious to you before you buy.

• To us. Via Report a fake shop you send us the address. After review, the shop may be added to our warning list.
• To Google Safe Browsing. Google offers a form for reporting dangerous pages. You can find it via the sources below.
• To the hosting provider. The registry DENIC is responsible for .de domains. It writes that it is not responsible for website content and cannot remove fake shops or recover money. Using a WHOIS lookup you can find the responsible provider and its abuse address. Send a notice of misuse there.
• To Watchlist Internet. The Austrian platform accepts reports via a form. You send the link to the shop, describe what happened and can upload screenshots.

If you reached the shop through a Google ad

The consumer advice centre of Lower Saxony advises reporting both shop and ad to Google using the “report ad or Shopping listing” function.It also refers to media reports according to which Google may be liable for losses under certain conditions: the shop appeared as a paid ad in the “Sponsored products” area, you ordered and paid via that ad, and Google had already been told that it was a fake shop and kept showing the ad.If you reached the shop via the normal search results or via social networks, this does not apply. So take a screenshot of the ad if you can still find it.

How a WHOIS lookup works and what it reveals about a domain is explained in our glossary.

Beware of supposed helpers

After a loss, people or companies sometimes get in touch promising to recover the money. The consumer advice centre of Hesse describes the pattern: the fraudsters claim the money has been found or secured and demand an advance payment for taxes, fees or processing. After payment they disappear. This is known as a recovery scam.

In May 2026, BaFin warned about supposed offers of help in which people claimed to work with the supervisory authority. BaFin states clearly that it has no connection with these people. According to BaFin, recovering money lost through fraud is not one of its tasks.It does not commission third parties to do so and does not contact individuals on its own initiative. Its advice: do not engage with such offers and file a police report.The consumer advice centre of Hesse advises checking the identity in the legal notice and asking the genuine company using contact details you have looked up yourself.

The order at a glance

1. Call your bank or payment service.

   Ideally on the same day. Depending on the method, request a recall, reversal or chargeback.

2. Secure the evidence.

   Shop page, order, payment, communication.

3. File a police report.

   Online via the online police station in Germany, at a police station in Austria, with the local police in Switzerland.

4. Report the shop.

   To us, to Google, to the hosting provider and to Watchlist Internet.

5. Stay alert.

   No advance payments to supposed helpers.

How a prepayment happens in the first place and which payment methods protect you better is explained in the article The prepayment trap. Current examples of fuel fake shops are in the article Firewood, pellets, heating oil.