Do police investigate credit card theft?

Yes, police do investigate credit card theft. However, the likelihood that they will prioritize your case may depend on things like whether you lost a significant amount of money, whether the theft is related to a larger crime, such as a carjacking, or whether there is evidence like video footage to pinpoint a suspect.

Credit card fraud is the most common form of identity theft, with more than 440,000 instances reported in 2024, according to the latest data from the Federal Trade Commission. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center got around 13,000 complaints about crimes involving credit card fraud in 2024.

Only a minor percentage of credit card fraud involves the physical theft of a credit card. Most credit card theft happens digitally, and you may not know about it until you see unauthorized transactions on your account. If your credit card information was stolen, you should report it to the proper authorities to have it investigated.

How to Report Credit Card Theft

Contact your credit card issuer.

When you notice suspicious charges on your card that you did not make, you should immediately call your credit card company using the number on the back of your card to report the theft. Stealing the credit card company’s money is theft, after all. If your physical card was stolen, log into your account online or through the mobile app to get your issuer’s contact information.

The bank or credit union can cancel your card, so no further fraudulent charges are made. You won’t have to pay for the purchases the fraudster has already managed to pull off, either. The credit card company can also issue you a new card with a new number.  

Your credit card issuer’s fraud department will review your account for suspicious patterns in your spending history. They may also contact:

• Merchants to gather details about the fraudulent transactions, such as the shipping address (if the purchase was made online), whether the card was present, and a description of the buyer.
• Cybersecurity specialists to pinpoint the IP address, if the transaction was made online.
• Major credit bureaus to get more information on when and where a fraudulent account originated.

Law enforcement agencies may be brought in if the theft involves a significant amount of money or if the theft seems to be widespread across multiple jurisdictions.

Report the theft to the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

If you still have your physical card but your credit card information was stolen, cybercriminals could have obtained it from something like a phishing email, a data breach, or a vulnerable website. If you suspect that is the case, file a report online with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). IC3 is a division of the FBI that handles internet-related crimes.

They may not be able to respond to every case, but reporting your theft to them can help them determine whether your case was part of a larger threat. If it is, that increases the odds that IC3 will work to find out who is behind the theft.

Get an identity theft affidavit from the Federal Trade Commission.

Reporting the theft to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will allow you to get an identity theft affidavit that you may submit to your credit card issuer and businesses as proof that your credit card information was stolen. You can use it to show that you are not responsible for any fraudulent charges that were made.

You can get your identity theft affidavit online through the FTC site IdentityTheft.gov, or by calling 1-877-438-4338. You just need to provide as many details about your case as possible.

File a police report.

Go to your local police department to report the theft of your card, or card information, and the fraudulent purchases charged to your account. Give them your information and provide evidence of the theft for the police report. Once the police report is complete, make sure to get a copy for your records.

It’s not guaranteed that the police will investigate your case when you file a police report. However, they may be more likely to investigate it if:

• There was a large amount of money stolen
• You have strong evidence to pinpoint who stole your card or where your card information was stolen
• The theft was related to a larger crime, such as a home invasion, or is associated with a major crime organization

Even if there is a low chance of your case being prioritized by the police, you should still file a police report for the credit card theft, since some banks may require it before they reimburse you for fraudulent charges.

How Much Are You Liable for on a Stolen Credit Card?

Once the credit card issuer completes its investigation, it will decide whether your claim is valid and whether you are responsible for any fraudulent charges. If the card issuer sides with you, you won’t have to pay for the charges you didn’t make, as major credit cards have zero-liability fraud protection.

How to Prevent Credit Card Fraud

To prevent credit card fraud, you should regularly review your credit accounts for any transactions that you did not authorize. You should also avoid using public Wi-Fi when making purchases online, and make sure you are using shopping sites that are secure, with “https” in the URL. In addition, don’t share your credit card details with anyone, and immediately report a lost or stolen card. 

It is also worthwhile to sign up for a service such as WalletHub, which offers various forms of identity theft protection. WalletHub monitors your credit accounts, bank accounts, and credit report for suspicious activity and alerts you about anything that pops up. It can also notify you if your information appears on the dark web. Furthermore, WalletHub offers identity theft restoration services and up to $1 million in identity theft insurance to assist you if your identity is stolen.

To learn more, check out WalletHub’s guide on steps to take after identity theft and our top picks for the best identity theft protection services.