Justice Department Launches Fraud Tip Program Offering Rewards

The Trump administration introduced a federal initiative on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, offering financial rewards to people who report government fraud through a new Justice Department website. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance announced the $25 million Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program, known as WHIP, at the White House, with payments of up to $30,000 available for qualifying tips.

According to reports from The Associated Press and The Hill, the program allows individuals to submit information through fraud.gov. Eligibility for a reward depends on whether the information leads to a fraud conviction or a federal enforcement action, rather than simply submitting an allegation.

During the announcement, Trump also presented a $10,000 check to Nick Shirley, a 24-year-old YouTube creator whose investigation into Somali-operated child care centers in Minnesota attracted national attention. The administration's announcement placed the new reporting program alongside its broader efforts to investigate alleged misuse of public funds.

Trump described the potential financial incentives in terms of a percentage of recovered or identified losses. His remarks included examples involving alleged fraud totaling billions of dollars, although the program's stated maximum reward in the initial announcement was $30,000.

"If anybody turns anybody in [for fraud of] a billion dollars, $5 billion, $100 billion, you get a 1 percent commission," Trump said during the announcement.

Trump also made broader claims about the scale of government fraud and the potential earnings for people who provide information. The White House presented the initiative as a means of encouraging Americans to report suspected theft of taxpayer money.

"The kind of money that's been stolen is trillions from this country, by crooked politicians that made things, and set things up.... I can name all of them," Trump said.

He continued by describing the financial incentives available to people who report suspected wrongdoing. The program's published terms, however, specify rewards of up to $30,000 for information that produces a qualifying legal or enforcement outcome.

"All of those people that are willing to do the right thing and turn people in … they're gonna become rich. When you get 1 percent of a billion dollars, 1 percent of a hundred billion dollars, it's gonna be a tremendous amount of money," Trump said.

Trump further characterized the proposed payments as unusually large, emphasizing the scale of the sums he said had been lost to fraud.

"It's the largest commission ever paid, probably for anything anywhere—because the numbers you're talking about are in the trillions," Trump said.

White House spokesperson Lauren Bis said the administration's task force was focusing on suspected misuse of taxpayer funds and accountability for those responsible. Her comments, reported by WBAL-TV News, outlined the administration's stated rationale for the initiative.

"Every day, President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud is zeroing in on the rampant abuse of taxpayer dollars and giving Americans the accountability they deserve," Bis said.

She added that the administration intended to pursue individuals suspected of stealing from the public.

"This administration has zero tolerance for individuals who steal from Americans," Bis said.

Shirley's involvement followed a video published on December 26 last year documenting visits to several Somali-run child care centers in Minnesota. Shirley alleged that the facilities were improperly receiving federal subsidies. The video drew criticism over its investigative methods and was followed by increased racist attacks against the Somali community, according to The New Republic.

One person featured in the video, Fahima Mahamud, 50, pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States. NBC News reported that Mahamud was the chief executive of Future Leaders Early Learning Center and had submitted fraudulent meal reimbursement claims for children at her day care.

The new initiative also arrives amid broader disputes over the administration's handling of alleged corruption and election security. The New Republic cited separate reporting about proposed efforts by Department of Homeland Security political appointees to obtain and examine a voting machine, as well as concerns raised by employees at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. According to ProPublica, the proposed operation was not carried out.

The New Republic also cited reporting on federal workforce reductions and a proposed $700 million cut to CISA funding in the president's 2027 budget proposal. The article said the proposed reduction could result in another 900 employees losing their positions, adding to concerns about the agency's capacity to protect election infrastructure.