In Russia, there has been an increase in fraud cases where criminals extort money from pensioners under the pretext of increasing their pensions. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, fraudsters use a multi-stage scheme to confuse the victim and force them to voluntarily hand over funds.
First, an unknown person calls the individual, introducing themselves as an HR employee from their former workplace. They claim that the pensioner is entitled to increased payments and ask for an SMS code, allegedly to register with the pension fund. After receiving the code, the conversation is cut off.
Then follows the second stage. The victim receives a call from a "detective" who states that scammers tried to take out a loan in their name through their bank account, but the operation was stopped. After this, the person is transferred to the next participant in the scheme – allegedly a representative of the Bank of Russia.
The latter convinces the pensioner that their funds are at risk and need to be "protected." To do this, they suggest transferring the money to special accounts or handing it over to a specific location, where they promise to draw up an "seizure protocol" and return the funds later.
Scammers also warn that this is a "secret operation" and forbid telling anyone about what is happening. In some cases, the victim is even given fictitious documents to create the appearance of legality.
If the person does not recognize the deception, the criminals continue to pressure them and may demand additional sums – for example, under the pretext of "recovering funds." For this, they suggest taking out a loan or borrowing money.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs urges Russians not to trust such calls, not to disclose SMS codes, and not to transfer money to unknown individuals under any circumstances.
