Right now
Safety first. Then the report. Then help you may not know exists.
A break-in, a stolen wallet, a scam that landed, an assault. Whatever just happened, the next steps are the same short list, and more help exists for crime victims than most people ever find out.
By Dan Whelan, founder of New World Survival
Researched from government agencies, university extension services, and other published sources. See our sources
First moves
Get safe, then pick the right door to report through
Any ongoing danger is 911
If the situation is still live, an intruder may still be present, someone is hurt, or you are being threatened, call 911 and get somewhere safe. The federal victim-services office puts it plainly: in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. Do not re-enter a burglarized home until police have cleared it; that caution costs minutes and removes the worst risk of the day.
Source: DOJ Office for Victims of Crime
Already over? Use the non-emergency line
A crime that is finished, discovered-stolen property, a car broken into overnight, goes to your local police department's non-emergency number, online reporting portal, or front desk. You still want the report: insurance claims, victim compensation, and any investigation all start from it.
Source: standard local reporting practice; see also OVC
Two crimes with their own federal doors
Identity theft: report at IdentityTheft.gov, the FTC's site, which builds you a step-by-step recovery plan for limiting the damage and fixing your credit. Online fraud and scams: file at ic3.gov, the FBI's central hub for reporting cyber-enabled crime, even if you are not sure your case qualifies. One caution from the FBI itself: IC3 never contacts people directly or works with firms to recover lost money, so anyone calling you in its name is the next scam.
Source: FTC IdentityTheft.gov; FBI IC3
Before you clean up
Preserve what you have
Photograph first, tidy second
The urge to put a ransacked room back together is strong and worth resisting for an hour. Photograph damage, entry points, and anything disturbed before touching it, for the police report and the insurance claim both.
Keep the paper and the pixels
Messages, emails, receipts, bank alerts, screenshots, voicemails: save them somewhere they cannot be deleted by accident. For a scam, the money trail is the case.
Write it down tonight
Times, descriptions, words said, what was taken. Memory smooths over details within days, and the notes you make while it is fresh will outperform your recollection in every later conversation.
The help most people never hear about
One number explains your options
VictimConnect: 1-855-484-2846
Call or text, 24/7, anonymous and confidential, for victims of all crime types. A specialist walks you through your rights and options and refers you to services near you. It is run by the National Center for Victims of Crime with Justice Department funding, and its one rule is yours too: if you are in immediate danger, 911 comes first.
Source: VictimConnect; DOJ OVW
Victim compensation exists in every state
State crime victim compensation programs can help with costs that insurance does not cover, and the Justice Department's Office for Victims of Crime maintains the list of every state's program and how to apply, plus a searchable directory of thousands of local victim-service programs. Most victims are never told this exists. You have now been told.
Source: DOJ Office for Victims of Crime
Two specific doors worth knowing
For an older family member caught by a scam, the National Elder Fraud Hotline is 1-833-372-8311. For crimes of violence or abuse, our sexual assault page and the personal safety page carry the dedicated hotlines.
Source: DOJ Office for Victims of Crime
Afterward
Being a victim of a crime is a real event
People sleep badly after a break-in, double-check locks for months after a theft, and feel foolish after a scam that was built by professionals to fool them. None of that is weakness; it is what the event costs, and it fades faster with support than without. VictimConnect can point to counseling resources, and if the weight gets heavy, 988 answers any hour.
When you are ready to think about prevention rather than recovery, the home security section covers locks, lighting, and the habits that matter, written for making a home safer rather than selling alarm contracts.
Keep going
Go deeper on what matters next
Sources: DOJ Office for Victims of Crime, Help for Victims; VictimConnect Resource Center; FTC IdentityTheft.gov; FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). All claims verified against primary sources. Last reviewed October 25, 2026.
This guide is not legal advice. It is a plain-language starting point for a day nobody plans for.