Over the past day, law enforcement officers have eliminated more than 100 fraudulent call centers across Ukraine that stole personal data and money from people. This was reported by the Security Service of Ukraine, UNN reports.
Details
Cyber specialists and law enforcement officers conducted a multi-stage special operation throughout Ukraine, which is part of the SBU's systematic work to counter Russian special services that are trying to undermine the socio-political situation in Ukraine.
According to the investigation, the criminals offered their victims to "make money on the stock exchange", "invest" in cryptocurrencies or receive dubious "profit" from betting, or otherwise misled the victims by fraudulent methods.
In the process of extorting money, the defendants collected personal data about their clients. Later, this information could have been obtained by Russian special services, which used it to remotely recruit new agents.
In this way, a large-scale call center operating in one of the penitentiary institutions of Vinnytsia region was liquidated. The illegal activity was organized by the so-called "warden" of the colony, who was involved in Russian criminals.
Almost 30 prisoners called depositors of financial institutions and stole their money under the guise of providing online services.
Also in Dnipropetrovs'k region, the SBU neutralized a criminal organization whose members collected information about captured Ukrainian soldiers and then extorted money from their relatives. In particular, in exchange for various "sums", the offenders promised to help with the return of Ukrainian defenders home.
But in Cherkasy region, the organizer of a local call center working for the sanctioned Yandex company was exposed. He involved up to 30 local residents in the clandestine activity, who remotely provided dispatching services to Yandex taxi companies in one of the Central Asian countries.
It has been established that in 2023, illegal business allowed transferring more than $1 million to the Russian budget.
The investigation is currently underway. The offenders face up to 12 years in prison.
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