What Evidence to Save After a Suspected Scam
If you think you've been scammed, what you save in the first hours matters — for law enforcement, for chargebacks, and for a documented VegasBlacklist report.
Save immediately, before you confront anyone or delete anything:
- Full screenshots of every text message, DM, or chat thread — including timestamps and usernames/handles, not just cropped snippets.
- Payment records: bank statements, Venmo/CashApp/Zelle transaction confirmations, wire transfer receipts, or crypto transaction hashes.
- Any contracts, invoices, or receipts, even informal ones (a text saying "I'll have it done by Friday for $500" counts).
- Photos of any item, property, or vehicle involved, especially "before" photos if it's a services dispute.
- The person's phone number, any social media handles, and any business name they used — save these even if you think they'll change them.
- Call logs and voicemails if the interaction happened by phone.
Do this next:
- Back up everything to a second location (cloud storage or email it to yourself) in case an account gets deleted or blocked.
- Write a plain timeline while it's fresh: what happened, when, how much money or property was involved.
- Check whether your payment method offers dispute/chargeback protection and file that claim promptly — most have short windows.
- Report to the appropriate agency (see our guide on reporting fraud to LVMPD, the Nevada AG, FTC, and FBI IC3).
Then, if you choose to document it publicly: VegasBlacklist requires this kind of evidence to publish a report — the more complete your documentation, the stronger and more credible the listing.
Last reviewed: [DRAFT DATE — update before publish]