On October 22, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced the launch of its new consumer fraud-reporting website at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The website will provide a reporting platform allowing consumer to directly report instances of fraud to the FTC, as well as related consumer issues under the FTC’s purview.

The FTC touted the platform’s “streamlined experience” and “user-friendly” tools to submit reports to the agency about “scams, frauds, and bad business practices.” The FTC encouraged consumers to report fraud and related issues even when the individual consumer has not personally lost money or been affected by the fraud – likely increasing the overall number of reports to the agency.

Additionally, the website provides advice to consumers on next steps to follow up with the FTC regarding a report. The site takes the place of the FTC Complaint Assistant and consumers visiting that site will be redirected to ReportFraud.ftc.gov to share their information. The site is also available in Spanish at ReporteFraude.ftc.gov.

A copy of the FTC’s announcement can be found here.