United Kingdom
Cryptocurrency scam recovery in the UK: what is realistic
Wallsec is an onchain forensics firm based in Reading. We trace where funds went after a fraud, classify the endpoints they reached, and prepare a structured evidence report you can take to Action Fraud, a regulated service or a solicitor. We do not promise outcomes, and we never hold or move client funds.
Why “recovery” is the wrong first question
Once a transfer is confirmed on a public network it cannot be reversed, cancelled or undone — by us, by an exchange, or by anyone else. That is a property of the technology, not a limit of effort. Any service that says otherwise is misdescribing how these networks work.
What can change is what you are able to prove. When value can be followed to an identifiable endpoint — most often a deposit address at a regulated service — that finding gives police, courts and the service itself something concrete to act on. Where funds return to victims, it is almost always through that route. So the useful first question is not “can this be recovered?” but “where did it actually go, and can that be evidenced?”
Some cases produce a clear answer and a route forward. Others end at a privacy protocol or a dormant wallet, and the honest conclusion is that no realistic route exists. We tell you which one you have as early as we can, rather than after months of billable work.
How an investigation works
1. Confidential first review
You share the transaction hashes, wallet addresses and dates you already have. We check whether the onchain record supports a traceable case and tell you plainly if it does not, at no cost.
2. Written scope and fixed quote
If a trace is viable, we set out exactly what will be examined, what the deliverable contains and what it costs. Nothing starts until you agree the scope in writing.
3. Tracing and evidence preparation
We follow the transfer graph across networks, classify each endpoint and record the methodology. You receive a structured report intended for police, regulated services and legal advisers.
A fuller breakdown, including expected timings for each stage, is set out on our investigation process page.
Common questions from UK clients
- Can stolen cryptocurrency be recovered in the UK?
- Sometimes, but never by reversing a confirmed transfer — that is not technically possible on any public network. Funds are returned in practice only when a court, a regulated service or a law enforcement process acts on evidence showing where value ended up. Onchain tracing produces that evidence; it does not itself move funds. Some cases end with a clear route to those steps, and many end with a documented conclusion that no realistic route exists.
- What does an onchain forensics firm actually do?
- We reconstruct the movement of funds from your first transfer, hop by hop, using the public record of each network. We document where value split, where it consolidated, and what type of endpoint it reached — a deposit address at a service, a bridge, a privacy protocol or a dormant wallet. The output is a structured report you can hand to police, a regulated service or a solicitor.
- Can you tell me who is behind the wallet address?
- Not from the ledger alone. Public networks record addresses, not identities. Attribution only becomes possible when an address links to off-chain information, and that information is normally released under legal process by the service holding it. Anyone who claims to name an individual purely from onchain data is describing something the technology does not permit.
- How much does an investigation cost?
- We quote a fixed scope in writing before any work begins, after a free first review of what you already have. We do not take payment over messaging apps, we never ask for cryptocurrency transfers, and we do not hold or move client funds at any point.
- How long does tracing take?
- A first assessment of whether the data supports a traceable case is usually completed within a few working days. A full trace and evidence report typically runs to around two weeks, depending on hop count and how many networks are involved.
- Should I report the loss to the police first?
- Yes. In the UK, report to Action Fraud (or Police Scotland on 101 in Scotland) as soon as you can, and tell your bank if a card or bank transfer was involved. Keep the crime reference number — forensic evidence is far more useful when it attaches to an open report.
Not sure whether your case is traceable?
Send what you have. The first review is confidential, obligation-free and answered honestly.