The legal framework
Reports are received by the Agence nationale des technologies de l'information et de la communication (ANTIC, national agency for information and communication technologies) — through the reporting form of its CIRT (Computer Incident Response Team), by email to alerts@antic.cm or on the free number 8202 — and by specialised judicial units. A complaint (plainte) is made at a commissariat (police station) or a brigade de gendarmerie, which refers it to the specialised unit, the Service national de lutte contre la cybercriminalité (national service for combating cybercrime). The decisive lever, however, is not the police but the mobile operator: a cancellation (annulation) or blocking (blocage) procedure can be started with the operator as long as the money has not yet been withdrawn. Mobile money is the dominant channel for fraud, ahead of bank transfers, and the text messages confirming a transfer are the essential evidence: they carry the references the investigators need. Reporting even a small amount helps others, since the same numbers come up from one victim to the next, and a number reported to the operator can be deactivated. Money that has gone into cryptocurrency is in practice lost. In sextortion (blackmail with intimate images or videos) the rule is never to pay: the blackmail does not stop after a first payment. Making a complaint is free, and calling the operator is generally free from its own network. These rules and services are national: they apply in the English-speaking regions as in the rest of the country.
The FCDO's travel advice for Cameroon warns that advance fee scams are common there, and that criminals use child adoption, offered through websites or emails, to obtain large sums before their victims suspect anything. For British and Irish nationals living in Cameroon, and for English-speaking Cameroonians who use mobile money every day, the first rule is to protect a mobile money account like a bank account: never give the PIN or a code received by text message, even to someone who claims to be calling from the operator. Anyone who has sent money to a wrong number or to a fraudster calls the operator's customer service at once — the useful window is counted in minutes, not days — and deletes no confirmation message; then comes the complaint at the commissariat or the gendarmerie, and the report to the ANTIC. The British High Commission in Yaoundé can help when a scam leaves someone without a passport or without money — an emergency travel document, contact with family or friends who can send money —, but it cannot recover lost money or intervene with the Cameroonian authorities. Blackmail with images or chats suggesting a same-sex relationship is especially dangerous: article 347-1 of the Code pénal (Penal Code) punishes such relations, prosecutions are regular and have relied on messages and photos, and blackmailers exploit that fear — anyone concerned should take confidential advice from a lawyer before taking any step.
For Cameroonians in the UK and for British-Cameroonian families, many scams play on the link between the two countries: a message from a supposed relative with a 'new number' who urgently needs money; an acquaintance asking for a mobile money transfer for a hospital stay, a funeral or a fee; intermediaries promising a UK visa, a university place or a job in exchange for money. UK visas are decided only by UK Visas and Immigration under the published rules, applications are made through GOV.UK, and nobody can guarantee one for a payment; a student visa requires a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies from a university or college licensed as a sponsor, and a Skilled Worker visa a job offer from an employer licensed by the Home Office, whose register of licensed sponsors is public. From the UK, people also meet romance scammers: a contact from a dating app or a social network who builds trust over weeks, then asks for money for customs, a ticket, a hospital or a cryptocurrency 'investment'. Where the money went decides who can help. From a UK account, report to Report Fraud (the service that replaced Action Fraud in December 2025; in Scotland, to Police Scotland) and to your bank at once, with the Financial Ombudsman Service if the bank refuses to help; the UK's mandatory reimbursement of authorised push-payment fraud, up to 85,000 pounds since October 2024, covers Faster Payments and CHAPS transfers between UK accounts — not a money transfer to Cameroon or a mobile money wallet there. Irish residents report to An Garda Síochána and their bank. What has reached a Cameroonian mobile money account can be stopped only by the operator in Cameroon, which is why a relative on the spot should call it at once.
Key points
| Dominant channel | Mobile money, ahead of bank transfers |
|---|---|
| Most effective lever | Blocking or cancellation with the operator, within the hour |
| Complaint | Commissariat or brigade de gendarmerie, which refers the case to the specialised unit |
| Specialised unit | Service national de lutte contre la cybercriminalité |
| Reports | ANTIC (CIRT): online form, alerts@antic.cm, free number 8202 |
| Evidence | The transfer confirmation text messages are the essential evidence: do not delete them |
| Cryptocurrency | Losses in practice irrecoverable |
| Sextortion | Never pay; the blackmail does not stop after a first payment |
| Costs | Complaint free; calling the operator generally free from its own network |
| British and Irish nationals | FCDO: advance fee scams common, including fake adoptions; UK visas only through UK Visas and Immigration; Report Fraud (Police Scotland in Scotland); UK reimbursement of push-payment fraud only between UK accounts; in Ireland, An Garda Síochána |
In practice
- Call the mobile money operator immediately: as long as the recipient has not withdrawn the funds, cancellation is sometimes possible.
- Keep all the transaction text messages — they carry the references needed for the investigation — as well as screenshots of chats, profiles and phone numbers.
- Make a complaint even for a small amount, and report the incident to the ANTIC through the CIRT form, by email to alerts@antic.cm or on 8202.
- Report the fraudster's number to the operator: it can be deactivated, which protects the next victims.
- If a relative or a friend asks for money by message, call back on the old, known number and check the voice before sending anything.
- Faced with blackmail using intimate images, do not pay, stop replying, keep the evidence and report it; anyone who could face prosecution in Cameroon because of the images themselves should first take confidential advice from a lawyer.
- From the UK: report to Report Fraud (Police Scotland in Scotland) and ask your bank at once to try to recall the payment; before any 'investment', check the FCA register and warning list; for a visa, use only GOV.UK and never pay an intermediary who promises a result.
Cost and coverage
In Cameroon a complaint is free, calling the operator is generally free from its own network, and the ANTIC's number 8202 is free. A civil action against a fraudster requires a lawyer and has uncertain prospects. In the UK, Report Fraud, the police and the Financial Ombudsman Service are free, as is the advice of Citizens Advice. Beware of 'recovery' services that promise, against an advance fee, to get lost money back: they are almost always a second scam.
Recent changes
The spread of mobile money and digital services has multiplied the forms of fraud across the region; the ANTIC publishes current warnings and prevention advice. In the UK, mandatory reimbursement of authorised push-payment fraud between UK accounts has applied since October 2024, and Report Fraud replaced Action Fraud as the national reporting service in December 2025; police and consumer organisations warn in particular against messages from supposed relatives with a 'new number' and against cryptocurrency investment scams.
Where to go
- Customer service of the mobile money operator: blocking, cancellation, reporting the number.
- Commissariat or brigade de gendarmerie; Service national de lutte contre la cybercriminalité.
- ANTIC: CIRT reporting form, alerts@antic.cm, number 8202; consumer and digital protection associations.
- eConsumer.gov: international portal for reporting fraud committed from abroad.
- British High Commission in Yaoundé: lost passports and emergencies; in the UK, Report Fraud, Police Scotland, the Financial Ombudsman Service and the FCA register; in Ireland, An Garda Síochána; Irish citizens abroad: Department of Foreign Affairs.
Worth knowing
The useful window is counted in minutes, not days: a call to the operator before you have even grasped the scale of the scam is worth more than a perfectly written complaint the next day. Delete no confirmation message. And from the UK: a transfer you made yourself to Cameroon is not covered by the UK reimbursement rules — send nothing for customs, a visa, a hospital or a ticket until you have reached the person by a second, known route.
Frequently asked questions
I sent money by mobile money to a fraudster in Cameroon — what should I do?
Call your operator's customer service at once: as long as the recipient has not withdrawn the money, a cancellation or a block can sometimes still work — the window is counted in minutes. Keep all the confirmation text messages, which carry the references for the investigation, make a complaint at the commissariat or the gendarmerie, even for a small amount, and report the incident to the ANTIC (CIRT form, alerts@antic.cm or 8202). Report the fraudster's number to the operator so that it can be deactivated.
Someone in Cameroon I know only online is asking me for money — what should I do?
Send nothing and check: a spontaneous video call, a reverse image search on the profile photos, questions about details. Stories about customs, a hospital, a visa fee or a ticket to the UK are the standard scripts, and an 'investment' in cryptocurrency on an unknown platform almost always ends in loss — check the FCA register and warning list first. If money has already gone: report to Report Fraud (Police Scotland in Scotland) and ask your bank to try to recall the payment; money sent in cryptocurrency or to a Cameroonian mobile money wallet is rarely recovered, but the report links cases together.
Someone is promising my nephew in Bamenda a UK visa for a fee — is it genuine?
No. UK visas are decided only by UK Visas and Immigration under the published rules, applications are made online through GOV.UK, and nobody can guarantee one for a payment. Intermediaries who promise visas, university places or jobs in the UK against an advance are a common pattern: a student visa requires a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies from a licensed university or college, and a Skilled Worker visa a job offer from an employer on the Home Office's public register of licensed sponsors. If money has already been paid, your nephew should make a complaint at the commissariat or the gendarmerie and report the case to the ANTIC.
I am being blackmailed with intimate images — should I pay?
No: the blackmail does not stop after a first payment. Stop replying, keep the messages, profiles and payment demands, and report it — in the UK, to the police, who take such cases seriously; the Revenge Porn Helpline can help adults with removal from platforms. Ask the platforms to remove the images. If the images or chats suggest a same-sex relationship, the situation in Cameroon is especially delicate, since article 347-1 of the Code pénal punishes such relations: take confidential advice from a lawyer there before any step; in the UK you can report without that risk.
Official sources and links
- ANTIC — report an incident (CIRT) — reporting form of the national ICT agency; alerts@antic.cm, free number 8202
- ANTIC — current warnings and prevention advice
- GOV.UK — Cameroon travel advice: safety and security — FCDO warning on advance fee scams, including adoption scams
- Report Fraud (UK) — reporting fraud involving UK accounts