Scam checker
Paste an offer, email, text message, or online listing below. We'll scan it for common funding-scam warning signs. It works without an account and runs entirely in your browser, so nothing you paste ever leaves your device.
Common funding-scam warning signs
These are the signals our checker looks for. Learn to spot them yourself — they show up again and again in funding scams.
- Promises certain approval or a fixed payout with no review. Legitimate programs cannot promise you will receive funding before reviewing your application.
- Asks you to pay a fee before releasing promised funds. Government grant applications are normally free, though some private competitions may charge an application fee — verify the fee, the operator, and the official terms independently before paying.
- Asks you to pay using gift cards. No legitimate funding program collects fees or payments this way.
- Asks you to send payment in cryptocurrency. Legitimate funding programs do not request cryptocurrency payments.
- Asks you to send money by wire transfer or a money order service. Legitimate programs do not ask applicants to wire money to receive funding.
- Asks for sensitive information such as a Social Security number, bank account or routing number, or a password, outside of an official application portal. Share this only on the agency's own verified website.
- Uses a web address that looks like a government site but is not an official .gov domain. Confirm the real agency domain before visiting it or entering any information.
- Claims every business automatically qualifies with no eligibility check. Legitimate programs always have specific eligibility rules to review.
- Describes what is actually a loan you must repay as if it were a grant. Read the terms carefully to see whether repayment or interest is required.
- Uses pressure to act immediately, such as a countdown or 'today only' language. Legitimate funding programs give you time to review and verify an offer.
- Mentions funding without linking to the administering organization's official page. Government programs use official government sites; corporate or nonprofit programs may use other domains. Verify the link through the organization's own established website before proceeding.
Think you've been targeted? Report it.
Reporting a scam is free and helps protect other business owners. You can report to:
- Federal Trade Commission — reportfraud.ftc.gov
- Your state Attorney General's office
- SBA Office of Inspector General — for scams about federal programs
- Verify the offer through the official source before doing anything else.
- Never pay an upfront fee for a free government grant or benefit application.
- Never send gift cards, cryptocurrency, or wire transfers to receive funding.
- Confirm the program on the agency's own official .gov site.
The honest way to find funding
FundBridge only lists programs linked to their official source, and never charges you to apply for a free program.
Start freeThis tool highlights common warning signs. It cannot confirm whether an offer is legitimate or fraudulent. When in doubt, do not send payment or personal information, and verify the program with the official agency directly.