Online criminals profit from official anti-fraud warnings to deceive Romanians
A new fraud scheme has emerged in Romania's virtual space: hackers display messages claiming to come from authorities, lock screens and demand 2,480 lei for unlocking. Police warn that no public institution requests payments via the internet.
Online criminals profit from official anti-fraud warnings to deceive Romanians
A sophisticated form of digital fraud is claiming new victims across Romania. Attackers exploit the image of public institutions to create the impression that users' electronic devices have been blocked, then demand sums of money for unlocking.
According to an alert issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and distributed on Facebook, cybercriminals display an alarming message on victims' mobile phones and computers. The text announces that the device has been blocked and that the owner must transfer 2,480 lei to regain access.
The authorities clarify that this is merely a façade. The real objective of those behind this operation is to extract the payment card data of their targets. Police advise those who encounter such messages to immediately leave the site in question, without clicking on any element of the page.
Representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs emphasise that no state body charges penalties through web platforms. Therefore, any request for online payment claiming to come from an authority should be treated with maximum suspicion.
This manoeuvre forms part of an increasingly diverse landscape of electronic fraud affecting citizens. Other frequently used techniques include: WhatsApp messages from supposed relatives who have damaged their phones and urgently need money; telephone calls from so-called financial advisers who promise rapid returns from fictitious investments; complex scenarios in which persons posing as bank employees, police officers or representatives of the National Bank convince victims to transfer their savings to accounts controlled by fraudsters; methods by which people are persuaded to take out bank loans and deposit the sums at virtual currency terminals; and the use of artificial intelligence to reproduce the voice of a family member and request funds under the pretext of a serious accident.
Cybersecurity specialists recommend broad dissemination of these warnings, as a single informed person can save others from significant financial losses.
Source: Profit.ro
Source: Google News RO — Crime (ro)