Scammed by a software house? Let’s get your project moving again.
You paid a software house, an agency or developers to build your app, and ended up with no money and no product? If you have evidence of the scam, we refinance finishing the project with a new software house, with up to 40% as a non-repayable grant.
Sound familiar? The cases we see most.
Scams and abandoned projects in software development are more common than you’d think. Here’s where we can step in.
You paid and they vanished
Deposits paid, then silence on emails, calls and messages.
Deadlines never met
Endless delays, promised deliveries that never came, new requests for money.
You never got the code
Repositories, logins, domains or accounts held hostage by the supplier.
An unusable product
What was delivered doesn’t work, or is nowhere near what was agreed.
Developers gone dark
Freelancers or developer teams who cut off all contact.
Work resold or copied
Your project reused for other clients or handed to third parties.
Scammed by a software house: what to do right now.
Before you even apply, these steps protect you and your project. They’re the same ones we’ll ask you to document.
- Keep all the evidence. Contract, quotes, invoices, bank transfer receipts, chats, emails, call recordings.
- Stop any further payments. Don’t pay more deposits until things are cleared up.
- Get your access back. Code repositories, domains, cloud accounts, app store accounts: check what’s in your name.
- Send a formal demand letter. A letter from a lawyer with a deadline to deliver the work or return the money.
- File a police report. If it looks like a scam, go to the relevant authorities in your country.
- Get the code assessed. A technical review tells you what can be saved and what needs rebuilding.
- Ask for a completion quote. From a new software house, starting from where the work stands today.
How refinancing works. Same logic, more checks.
It works like our other funding, with one extra step: verifying the evidence of the scam.
You submit everything
Details, project, team, evidence of the scam and the new software house’s quote, on dedicated pages.
We verify the evidence
We check the authenticity of the contract, payments, communications and any police report.
We review the project
Team, market, product, sustainability and whether the new quote is fair.
Decision in a few days
You get a reasoned decision within 5 business days.
Your project restarts
We fund the new software house as each phase is completed.
The evidence you need. It must be real and verifiable.
We only review documented scams. Every piece of evidence is verified: fake or altered documents mean exclusion and can have legal consequences.
Required
- Signed contract, quote or order Showing the engagement, the amount and what was supposed to be delivered.
- Proof of payment Bank transfers, receipts, invoices: what you actually paid.
- Account of the facts In chronological order, with dates and amounts.
- Copy of the police report If you filed one.
Recommended
- Chats, emails and messages The communications that show promises, delays and the disappearance.
- Formal demand letter or legal filings Letters from your lawyer and any replies received.
- Technical assessment An evaluation of the real state of the code delivered.
- Repository access Even partial: it helps estimate what can be recovered.
What we fund.
- Finishing the project with a new software house
- Technical review and recovery of the existing code
- Rebuilding the parts that can’t be used
- Launching the product once it’s finished
Same logic as our other funding: up to 40% as a non-repayable grant, with funds paid directly to the new software house as each phase is completed.
What we don’t fund.
- Cases with no documentary evidence of the scam
- Simple disagreements about quality, with no fraudulent behaviour
- Situations where the applicant didn’t honour the contract
- Amounts already refunded by the supplier or an insurer
- Compensation for losses: we fund the project’s future, not the recovery of money
Total confidentiality.
The evidence and names you provide are used only for the review: they’re never published or shared with the supplier. FundFound isn’t a law firm and doesn’t replace the authorities; if needed, we’ll put you in touch with lawyers from our partner network.
Scam recovery funding FAQ.
Can’t find your answer? Write to us.
Who can apply for scam recovery funding?
Founders (individuals), companies and startups who hired a software house, an agency or developers to build an app, software or platform and were scammed, with documentary evidence of what happened.
What evidence do I need to submit?
Required: the signed contract or quote, proof of payment and an account of the facts, plus a copy of the police report if you filed one. Recommended: chats and emails, formal demand letters, technical assessments and repository access.
Do I have to have filed a police report?
No, but it carries real weight. If you filed one, we ask for the authority, date and a copy; if it’s in progress, say so in your application.
How much can you fund?
We look at the completion cost in the new software house’s quote. As with our other funding, up to 40% is a non-repayable grant and the funds go directly to the software house.
How soon will I get an answer?
Within 5 business days of receiving your complete application. It takes a few days longer than our standard funding because we verify the evidence is authentic.
Will you refund the money I lost?
No. Refinancing is about finishing your project and getting it moving again, not compensating your losses. To recover the money, we recommend talking to a lawyer; we can put you in touch with lawyers in our network.
Will you publish the name of whoever scammed me?
No. Your information and evidence stay confidential and are used only to review your application.
Can I choose the new software house?
Yes. You name the software house and its completion quote; if you don’t have one, we can suggest partners from our network.