How to Report Unwanted Calls to the FCC and FTC (Step by Step)
Reporting a scam call takes three minutes, it's free, and it works better than most people think: complaints become public data that powers blocking tools (including this site), and enforcement cases are built directly on them. Here's exactly where and how to file.
Updated 2026-07-17 · By Andrew Pickett, OmegaIT
Why bother reporting
Your complaint does three concrete things. First, it becomes public record: the FCC publishes unwanted-call complaints — including the caller's number — as open data. This site tracks nearly a million of them going back to 2014, and every number page's complaint history exists because someone filed. Second, complaint volume feeds carrier analytics, so reported numbers get labeled and blocked faster for everyone. Third, enforcement: FCC forfeiture orders and FTC cases against robocall operations cite complaint records as core evidence.
The system is visibly working, slowly: annual complaint volume in the data we track has fallen roughly 63% from its 2018 peak (133,119 then; 48,770 in 2025) as STIR/SHAKEN caller-ID authentication and enforcement bite. Every report keeps that pressure on.
Where to file — FCC vs FTC
FCC (consumercomplaints.fcc.gov): the right venue for unwanted calls, robocalls, spoofed caller ID and unwanted texts. Choose "Phone" → "Unwanted calls", enter the calling number, date/time, and whether it was a robocall or live caller. No account needed; two minutes. This is the complaint set that appears on this site's number pages, attributed as public record.
FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov for fraud; donotcall.gov/report for Do Not Call violations): the right venue when money or deception is involved — you were pitched, scammed or lost money. FTC reports feed Consumer Sentinel, the database law enforcement across the country queries. If a call was both unwanted and fraudulent, file both; they serve different systems and neither is wasted.
In both cases the most valuable field is the free-text description. Two sentences on the script — "robocall claiming my SSN was suspended, pressed 1, live agent wanted gift cards" — is what turns a data point into evidence.
The three-minute routine for any scam call
(1) Don't engage — hang up, don't press keys, don't call back. (2) Look the number up to see if it's a known campaign, and leave a community report describing what the call said — that warns the next person within minutes, faster than any official channel. (3) File with the FCC (and the FTC if money was involved). (4) Block the number and, if you're getting waves, enable your carrier's free filter — see the full blocking playbook.
If a specific caller keeps at it despite being on the Do Not Call Registry, keep dated notes — DNC violations by real telemarketers carry per-call penalties, and your log makes the case. More on what the registry does and doesn't stop in our DNC guide.
Got a call from an unknown number?
Look it up free — carrier, location, FCC complaints and first-hand reports.
Related
FAQs
Will the FCC call me back or fix my specific problem?
Not usually — unwanted-call complaints feed enforcement and public data rather than individual casework (unlike, say, a billing dispute with your carrier, which the FCC does mediate). Your complaint's value is collective: it flags the number for everyone and builds the enforcement record.
Is there any point reporting a spoofed number?
Yes. Even when the displayed number is fake, complaint patterns — timing, script, call type — help investigators map campaigns, and spoofing itself is illegal when done with intent to defraud (Truth in Caller ID Act). Report what you saw; note in the description if the number appears spoofed.
Can I report calls that keep coming after I registered on the Do Not Call list?
That's exactly what donotcall.gov/report is for. Legal telemarketers must honor the registry within 31 days; continued sales calls after that are violations with penalties per call. Scammers ignore the registry entirely — report those to the FCC/FTC as fraud instead.