How it works
After losing money to a scam, victims are contacted (often not long after) by someone claiming to be a recovery specialist, lawyer, or even a government agency representative, offering to retrieve the lost funds - for an upfront fee.
Why this targeting is so effective
Scam victim lists are valuable precisely because someone on them has already proven willing to send money based on a promise. The emotional desire to undo a loss makes a second pitch land even when the first one shouldn't have.
The tell
Any legitimate path to recovering funds - a regulator's complaints process, a bank chargeback, a law enforcement report - never requires an upfront fee paid to the person offering to help. Genuine recovery, when possible at all, doesn't work this way.
What to do instead
Report the original loss to the relevant regulator or your bank/payment provider directly, and treat any unsolicited "recovery" offer - regardless of how official it sounds - as highly likely to be a second scam.