Scammed in Bali? What to do after a rental scam
Nest team · Last updated:
If you've been scammed in Bali, what to do first is simple: stop paying, and save every message, ad and transfer receipt before anything disappears. Then, the same day, call your bank and report the scam to Indonesia's anti-scam centre (IASC) and to the police, because the sooner you report, the better the chance that money still in the scammer's account can be blocked.
This guide is for renters who paid a DP (down payment, uang muka), a deposit or rent for a home that turned out to be fake, already taken or not the "owner's" to rent. It describes the official channels as of October 2026 and is general information, not legal advice.
Scammed in Bali? What to do in the first hour
Stop paying
The next message may ask for more: an "administration fee", a "tax", or a payment to release your refund. Indonesia's task force against illegal financial activities (Satgas PASTI, coordinated by the financial services authority OJK) tells people to stop transacting when someone keeps asking for extra payments.
Save the evidence
Once they have your money, a scammer may block you or disappear, as police said the suspect in the shophouse case below did. Before you block anyone or delete a chat, keep:
- the ad or listing: screenshots and its link;
- the person's profile: the name shown, the profile link or username, the full phone number;
- the whole conversation, with dates and times visible;
- every transfer receipt (bukti transfer) or the statement showing the payment;
- the receiving account: bank or e-wallet, account number and account name;
- anything else they sent, such as a contract, photos or an address.
This is close to the list OJK asks scam victims to keep, and OJK adds: don't delete conversations or apps until everything is documented. Then write down what happened, in order, with dates and amounts: the police will ask for this chronology (kronologi).
In January 2025, Bali's regional police (Polda Bali) described the case of a Turkish national who, by her own account, had paid in full, from Turkey, for a villa and yoga package in Canggu, then fell out with the villa's admin on WhatsApp over a change of location, asked for a refund and was blocked. Polda Bali called it a dispute and did not treat it as a proven scam. The Kuta police directed her to Polda Bali's cyber crime directorate, where officers judged her evidence insufficient and asked her to complete it and come back. A police report, they said, has to rest on clear evidence.
How do I get my bank to stop the money?
Call your bank at once, on the number on your card or in its app, never one someone sends you. Say you were scammed, ask whether the transfer can be stopped or the receiving account blocked, and note the reference number.
If you paid from an Indonesian account or e-wallet
OJK and the other members of Satgas PASTI launched the Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre (IASC) in November 2024. According to OJK, you can report to the bank or payment provider you used, which coordinates the case through IASC, or directly on the IASC website, iasc.ojk.go.id, with your data and evidence. Check on the form itself whether it fits your case, for example as a foreigner.
IASC holds transactions, blocks the accounts linked to a scam, identifies the people involved and tries to return whatever is left of victims' money. OJK says how fast you report strongly affects how much can be saved, and in January 2026 it named slow reporting among its problems. By 31 July 2026, OJK reported, IASC had received 637,055 reports, blocked about Rp 724.1 billion linked to scams and returned Rp 204.3 billion to victims. These figures cover all kinds of financial scams, not only rentals. Money can come back, but only what is still in the scammers' accounts when they are blocked.
OJK also warns about fake websites using the IASC name and people claiming to represent it. Reports go only through iasc.ojk.go.id; to check anything about IASC, contact OJK on 157 or WhatsApp 081 157 157 157.
If you paid from a bank abroad
Call your bank, card issuer, payment app or transfer company straight away. The US Federal Trade Commission, for example, tells bank-transfer victims to report it to their bank immediately and ask for a reversal; what a bank can do depends on its rules and your country's.
How do I report a rental scam to the police in Bali?
You can call 110 to report, complain or ask for information; Polri says the line is free throughout Indonesia. For a formal police report (Laporan Polisi, LP), go to the SPKT (Sentra Pelayanan Kepolisian Terpadu), the service desk of a police station. Which station depends on the case and where it happened, the Tangerang police page below says; in Bali, that can be the Polsek (local police), a Polres or Polresta (such as Polresta Denpasar) or Polda Bali.
What to bring and what happens next
This is the procedure published by the Tangerang city police (Polres Metro Tangerang Kota), a police force outside Bali; a Bali station may differ in the details:
- Bring an identity document (KTP, driving licence or passport) and your evidence: photos, videos, documents, witness details.
- Explain the chronology clearly; the officer writes it into the report form.
- Read the report back, check it and sign it.
- You receive a Surat Tanda Terima Laporan Polisi (STTLP), the receipt proving you reported, which the page says can also be used for an insurance claim.
The same page says making a police report is free. The police then investigate. You are entitled to updates, usually by a progress letter (SP2HP), and can ask the investigator directly by showing your STTLP. Report as soon as you can, the page adds, while the evidence is fresh.
Can I report online?
- patrolisiber.id: a guide from the Pangandaran police names it as the official site of the national police's cyber crime directorate (Direktorat Tindak Pidana Siber, Bareskrim Polri) for public complaints about cyber crime, with a form to upload evidence.
- Super App Polri: on 14 April 2026, Polri added online police reports to its app. At launch it was live only with the regional police of Jakarta (Polda Metro Jaya), West Java and Banten and is to be extended to all of Indonesia, so check in the app whether Bali is covered.
Reports can lead to an arrest
In November 2025, detikBali reported that the Denpasar Barat police had arrested a 54-year-old suspect from Jakarta who, police said, posed as the owner of shophouses (ruko) for rent in Denpasar and Badung and deceived six tenants, with losses estimated at Rp 156 million. One victim had met her, viewed the ruko, paid a DP and then the rest of a year's rent, and learned the next day that it wasn't hers. Victims had reported at several police offices; she was traced to and arrested in South Jakarta. detikBali reported an arrest, not a conviction.
How do I report the scammer's bank account?
Use cekrekening.id, the reported-accounts service of Indonesia's communications ministry (Kominfo, now Komdigi). According to the ministry, Periksa Rekening checks whether a bank account or e-wallet has been reported for suspected fraud, and Laporkan Rekening is where you report a suspicious account.
According to a 2020 explainer republished by a city government's information office, a report needs the bank name, account number, account holder's name, a category, the chronology and proof such as chat screenshots and transfer receipts, and can't be processed without evidence. A Kominfo official quoted in it said any bank account or e-wallet can be reported, and set out the limits: the service doesn't return money or freeze accounts, which is up to the bank or e-wallet provider, although law enforcement can ask for a reported account to be frozen. These details date from 2020 and may have changed. Its value is the warning it gives the next person who checks that number.
Should I report the profile and the ad too?
Yes, once your evidence is saved: report the profile, ad or number on the platform where you found it. Meta's guidance for Facebook Marketplace says to stop communicating with someone you think is scamming you and report it to Facebook, and says scams that move off its platform are most common in categories including rentals.
If you warn others online, the Pangandaran police guide cautions that what you share must not violate anyone's privacy or defame them, especially before the authorities have verified the evidence. Stick to what you can show.
I'm a foreigner: should I contact my embassy?
Yes. What embassies offer varies. The Australian Consulate-General in Bali, for example, says it can't give legal advice but can provide a list of English-speaking lawyers in Bali and a list of translation and interpreting service providers in Indonesia.
Beware of anyone who offers to get your money back
After a scam, you may be targeted again. The US Federal Trade Commission warns of "refund and recovery scams": someone, sometimes posing as a government agency or a law firm, says they can get your money back if you pay first, calling it a "processing fee", an "administrative charge" or a "tax". Its advice is never to pay upfront for a refund or for help getting one, because government agencies and legitimate organisations never ask for money to help you get a refund. In Indonesia, remember OJK's warning about fake IASC sites, and that calling 110 is free.
What if it's a dispute, not a scam?
Not every rental that goes wrong is a crime. If the owner or agent is real and the problem is the deal, such as a deposit not returned or a home not as described, the police will still want clear evidence of fraud, as the Canggu case shows. Put your complaint in writing, keep the contract and receipts, and ask a lawyer (advokat) about your options. If the question is who owns the property or whether a lease deed is valid, check with a licensed notary (PPAT).
The short version
| What to do | Where or how |
|---|---|
| Stop paying, save the evidence | Dated screenshots, links, receipts, the account number; delete nothing |
| Call your bank or payment app | The number on your card or in the official app |
| Report to IASC | Through your Indonesian bank, or on iasc.ojk.go.id |
| Make a police report | The SPKT desk of a police station, or call 110; keep your STTLP |
| Report the account | Laporkan Rekening on cekrekening.id |
| Report the profile and ad | On the platform where you found them |
| Foreigners: tell your embassy | Ask what help it offers |
Do the first four on the same day if you can, and ignore anyone who wants a fee to recover your money.
Sources
- Tribratanews Polda Bali (police): Polda Bali Tanggapi Berita Ditsiber Tolak Laporan WNA Turki (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Tribratanews Polri: Layanan Contact Center 110 Berlaku Nasional, Polri Pastikan Bisa Diakses Gratis di Seluruh Indonesia (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Tribratanews Polri: Polri Luncurkan Layanan Laporan Polisi Online, Super App Polri Kini Semakin Lengkap dan Transparan (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Polres Metro Tangerang Kota (police): Laporan Pengaduan (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Polres Pangandaran (police): Panduan Lengkap Melaporkan Penipuan Online ke Otoritas Berwenang (accessed 6 October 2026)
- OJK: Tingkatkan Pelindungan Konsumen Satgas Pasti Lakukan Soft Launching Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre (Pusat Penanganan Penipuan Transaksi Keuangan) (accessed 6 October 2026)
- OJK: Satgas PASTI Terima 25 Ribu Pengaduan Aktivitas Keuangan Ilegal dan IASC Berhasil Blokir Dana Terkait Scam Rp724 Miliar (accessed 6 October 2026)
- OJK: Siaran Pers: Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre Berhasil Kembalikan Rp161 Miliar Dana Masyarakat Korban Scam (accessed 6 October 2026)
- OJK: Waspada Penipuan Website Mengatasnamakan Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre (IASC) (accessed 6 October 2026)
- JDIH Kemkomdigi: Layanan Cek Rekening (infographic) (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Diskominfo Kota Kotamobagu: 110.000 Laporan Rekening Terindikasi Penipuan Online, Cek di Situs Kominfo Berikut (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Australian Consulate-General Bali: Services for Australians (accessed 6 October 2026)
- US Federal Trade Commission: What To Do if You Were Scammed (accessed 6 October 2026)
- US Federal Trade Commission: Refund and Recovery Scams (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Meta: Scam Protection Center (Facebook Marketplace trust and safety) (accessed 6 October 2026)
- detikBali: Wanita Jakarta Ditangkap Tipu Enam Penyewa Ruko di Bali (accessed 6 October 2026)