Heads of companies and government agencies began to be deceived on behalf of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation

The Central Bank of Russia (CBRF) has discovered a new fraud scheme in which attackers pose as regulator employees. They create fake accounts on behalf of high-ranking Central Bank officials in popular instant messengers, the Izvestia newspaper writes.

The scammers’ accounts look very realistic and contain real employee data, such as last name, first name, patronymic and photo. Such fraudulent activities are especially widespread in regions where messages are sent on behalf of the heads of regional bank branches, the Central Bank reported.

Using fake accounts, attackers send messages to the heads of large companies or government agencies, as well as their deputies. In these messages, false employees ask for help, for example, in detaining scammers in a credit institution. The attackers then call the potential victim and try to gain access to banking data or convince them to transfer money to accounts controlled by the scammers.

This multi-stage fraud scheme began to actively spread in Russia in the summer of 2023. The attackers convince the potential victim that they will soon receive a call that cannot be ignored, and then lure money out under various pretexts.

Previously, the court found Donald Trump guilty of fraud.