Frequently Asked Questions

If you believe that you are in danger, we strongly urge you to call your local police department’s emergency number (911).

If your local police department employs a victim advocate, they may be able to help you develop a safety plan. You may also contact a local victim service provider. If you need help locating a victim service provider in your area, contact the VictimConnect helpline by phone or text at 855-484-2846 or online chat for a referral in your area.

The Stalking Prevention, Awareness, and Resource Center also provides information and resources on developing a safety plan on the What to Do if You Are Being Stalked section of their site.

Resources to assist child abduction victims and their families are available on the Missing and Exploited Children section of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention site. For additional information about child abduction, visit the Child and Youth Victimization section of our site.

Created in 1983 to implement recommendations from the President’s Task Force on Victims of Crime, OVC was authorized in 1988 through an amendment to the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) of 1984 to administer the Crime Victims Fund (the Fund).

More information about OVC is available on the About OVC section of our website.

The amount of money appropriated to each state's victim compensation program is available from the latest Crime Victims Fund Compensation and Assistance Allocation Charts on our Funding & Awards: Formula Grants page.

Get notices about OVC's programs and initiatives and stay in the know about the latest news, by subscribing to receive News From OVC.

Also visit our Subscribe page to follow OVC on social media and find other ways to stay informed about events and updates to various OVC resources.

Information on children found at methamphetamine labs can be found in the OVC publication, Children at Clandestine Methamphetamine Labs: Helping Meth's Youngest Victims.

OVC offers a national events calendar that features events, including training, presentations, and seminars from organizations around the country. Visit our Events page to find training opportunities or add your own events.

PTSD, as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, is a psychological reaction that occurs after experiencing a highly stressful event outside the range of normal human experience. PTS symptoms can happen without a full diagnosis of PTSD; the disorder is diagnosed when a number of the following PTS symptoms last longer than 1 month following a traumatic event:

• Re-experiencing or spontaneous memories and recurrent dreams of the traumatic event, flashbacks, or other intense or prolonged psychological distress.
• Avoidance of distressing memories, thoughts, feelings, or external reminders of the event.
• Negative cognitions and mood, including myriad feelings such as a persistent and distorted sense of blame of self or others, estrangement from others, markedly diminished interest in activities, and/or an inability to remember key aspects of the event.
• Arousal marked by aggressive, reckless, or self-destructive behavior; sleep disturbances; hypervigilance; and other related problems.

For additional information, visit the Physical and Mental Health section of our site.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics' National Crime Victimization Survey Data Dashboard provides data on the number of sexual assaults that occur annually in the United States. The Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program provides data on rape reported to the police.

For additional information about sexual assault, visit the Sexual Assault section of our website.

Visit the Report a Crime section of the U.S. Department of Justice website to learn how you can report child pornography or cases involving the sexual exploitation of children.

You can also report suspicion of child sexual exploitation to your local police, your Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline (file a report online or call 800-843-5678).