Extortion and threats · Also called hitman email scam, hit man extortion, pay or die scam, death threat email, fake kidnapping threat
Hitman and death threat scam
The hitman scam is a threatening message from someone claiming to have been paid to kill you, who offers to call off the hit, and sometimes reveal who ordered it, if you pay. The threat is invented to frighten you into paying fast. Report it to the police and never send money.
How it works
- You receive an email or message from someone claiming they were hired, often by a friend or someone close to you, to kill you.
- They demand money to call off the hit, sometimes offering evidence of who hired them once you pay.
- They warn that you are being watched and that you or your family will be harmed if you contact the police.
- Variants threaten to kidnap you or a loved one, include your personal details to seem real, and set a tight deadline for a wire transfer.
Red flags
- An unexpected message claims someone paid to have you killed.
- The sender asks for money to cancel the threat, or offers to name who hired them if you pay.
- It warns you not to contact the police or tell your family.
- It includes your personal details and a very short deadline to pay.
If you are targeted
- Stop: do not reply and do not send any money.
- If you believe you are in immediate danger, call emergency services (911 in the US), and contact your local police or FBI field office.
- Keep the message and file a complaint at ic3.gov.
- Report it. Our Report a scam page lists where to report in your country, such as ic3.gov and ReportFraud.ftc.gov in the US.
Prevention
For individuals
- Limit the personal details you post online, such as your phone number and home address, which scammers use to make threats seem real.
- Never pay money to people you do not know who threaten you online.
- Report every threat of this kind to the authorities, even when you believe it is a scam.
By the numbers
Figures are for the reporting category this scam falls under, not this scam alone.
| Extortion losses reported to the FBI IC3 in 2025 | $122.5M | US, 2025, FBI IC3 |
Real cases
No documented case in the atlas yet. New cases are added as they are sourced.
How official datasets classify it
- FBI IC3
- Extortion
- Scamwatch
- Threat scams
Questions
- I got an email from a hitman saying someone paid to kill me. Is it real?
- The FBI has warned about hitman email scams since 2006, in which the sender claims to have been hired to kill the recipient and demands payment to call it off. Do not pay; report it to your local police or FBI office and to ic3.gov.
- The message says not to contact the police. Should I?
- Yes. Warning you away from the police is part of the scam. The FBI advises contacting your local FBI office and filing a complaint at ic3.gov.