In the Vitebsk Region Media Center, employees of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Regional Executive Committee discussed cybercrime issues with young people
Law enforcement officers met with students at the Media Center of the Vitebsk Region to remind them of the basics of safe behavior on the internet and the importance of educating their parents in this regard.
The event was organized by the Department of Internal Affairs of the Regional Executive Committee as part of the republican preventive campaign "Cybersecurity Decade: CyberChildren."
— This year, more than 700 cybercrimes have been recorded. Most of them involve theft of funds from bank accounts. Citizens have lost over 970 thousand rubles. Among the victims were 21 minors, — said Colonel of the Police Alexander Garus, Head of the Department for Combating Cybercrime of the Criminal Police Department of the Regional Executive Committee's Internal Affairs Department. — Sometimes teenagers themselves act as offenders. For example, in Vitebsk, one of them deceived four peers: he asked for their phones to make a call, but instead used them to make money transfers using the mobile operator's application. The amount of damage was 400 rubles. A college student, taking advantage of free access to his roommate's laptop in the dormitory, logged into his online casino account and lost about 1 thousand rubles.
Offenders constantly improve old methods and invent new ways to steal other people's money and avoid deserved punishment. Their main goal is the same — to extract confidential data from a person, either by tricking them into clicking on a special link (this technique is called phishing) or through a phone call (vishing).
Today, there is a sharp increase in illegal activities involving the use of other people’s accounts of the popular Viber application, which allow making calls over the internet. Criminals use these methods to evade responsibility: contacting potential victims while hiding behind other people’s phone numbers. Scammers may employ various schemes to gain control of messaging accounts.
— They often send messages in chats and communities with links offering to obtain certain information: fake news, job offers, or information about your child’s academic performance. By following the link, under a plausible pretext, you will be asked to grant access to your account from another device, — noted Alexander Garus. — If criminals gain control of an account, they start calling our compatriots: asking them to participate in a police special operation to catch scammers who have illegally obtained loans, or posing as bank employees who have detected suspicious activity on the interlocutor’s account. People are more likely to believe that they are being contacted by banks or other government agencies if the call comes from a Belarusian number. For example, recently a worker from Orsha lost about 13 thousand rubles after speaking with a fake law enforcement officer, and a teacher from Glubokoe lost over 8 thousand rubles. In total, about 960 residents of the Vitebsk region became victims of such crimes this year.
Another popular method is the use of malicious software. In 2022 alone, law enforcement officers identified 12 hackers engaged in this activity.
— We monitor the internet to identify suspicious websites, developers, and users of prohibited software that helps, for example, gain access to databases storing people’s accounts in social networks, bank accounts, and electronic wallet details. Therefore, this information is later used for theft of funds, fraud, blackmail, or simply sold, — emphasized the officer. — This is mainly done by young people, some of whom have previously been convicted under similar articles.
Cybercriminals also operate on online dating platforms. After a brief correspondence, an impostor woman offers her suitor to spend the first meeting at a theater, hookah lounge, etc. She shares a link to a website where tickets can be purchased or a table reserved. As a result, the suitor loses all the money on his card.
— Do not forget about other methods that fraudsters have long and, unfortunately, successfully used. In particular, they often call and pretend to be a relative who has been involved in a traffic accident, asking the person on the other end of the line to pass a large sum to a courier to settle with the victims or deal with law enforcement, — emphasized Alexander Garus. — Therefore, once again, I draw citizens' attention to the fact that you should never follow links sent to you supposedly by bank employees or other individuals. If you accidentally allowed access to your messenger account, this can be easily fixed in the settings. Also, do not take out loans after calls from unknown persons and do not transfer money to the specified accounts, do not download the programs they recommend. At the slightest suspicion that a crime is being committed against you, immediately contact the bank and the police.