How to report a cybercrime
If you have been defrauded, hacked or threatened online, every Gulf country runs an official channel for it — and filing the report is what starts the process. However you spell it, this is the right channel.
What counts as a cybercrime
Online fraud, a hacked or taken-over account, blackmail, identity theft, money taken through a message or a fake page, and the impersonation of a person online are all matters that can be reported through the national cyber channel. You do not have to work out the legal category before you report — the channel decides how the case is classified. Any cyber fraud — from a fake message to a hacked account — can be reported, and the competent authorities route it to the right channel.
“Someone took over my account and I can no longer access it.”
“I was defrauded online and the money was transferred.”
“I am being threatened online and asked to pay.”
“Someone is using my name and my photo on a fake account.”
What to prepare before you file
A report is only as strong as the evidence attached to it. Screenshot the messages, the profile, the call log and the payment page before anything is deleted. Note the date and time of each step, the amount and the method of any payment, and any reference number your bank gave you. Write the sequence of events in a few plain lines before you open the form, so that nothing is left out under pressure.
⚠️ Deleting the conversation, the profile or the account before you take screenshots.
⚠️ Reporting only to the platform and not to your bank or the national channel.
⚠️ Paying anyone who offers to chase the case for you in return for an upfront payment.
⚠️ Waiting several days because you feel embarrassed — speed matters more than pride.
- Secure your accounts first: change your passwords and turn on two-step verification.
- Stop the loss: call your bank's fraud line — the number printed on your card — and ask them to freeze the card or recall a transfer.
- Preserve the evidence: screenshots, phone numbers, payment references and dates.
- File the report through the official national channel for your country (below).
- Keep the reference number of your report and follow up with it.
Which channel to use
Every Gulf country runs its own national cyber channel, and the right one is the channel of the country where the incident happened or where the account is held. The official routes for all six countries are listed at the end of this page.
Bank fraud is reported twice
Report the fraud to your bank and, where the national route asks for it, to the cyber channel as well. The bank handles the money; the channel handles the crime. Doing only one of the two leaves half of the case unopened.
Reporting is not the same as suing
Filing a report records the incident and starts an official process; it does not by itself return money or guarantee an outcome. Keep your own copies of everything and keep your expectations realistic.
Attempts matter too
A fake message you received and did not act on is still evidence: it helps protect the next person and it shows the pattern that is circulating. Report attempts the same way you would report a loss.
Report it officially
🇦🇪 UAE
Dubai Police eCrime (ecrime.ae, 901) · Abu Dhabi Aman 8002626 · Ministry of Interior e-Crime · emergencies 999.
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
Ministry of Interior e-Crime platform · report financial fraud to your bank and SAMA · emergencies 911.
🇰🇼 Kuwait
CITRA Cyber Security
[email protected] · Ministry of Interior cybercrime unit · emergency 112.
🇧🇭 Bahrain
National Cyber Security Center
[email protected] · Ministry of Interior economic & electronic security · emergencies 999.
