Cases of fraud using Telegram are increasingly being recorded in Russia. Attackers falsify accounts of various senior executives who write to users who are companies’ subordinates. In order not to become their victim, you first need to contact the administrator yourself or check the authenticity of the account from which the message came, said IT expert, former special services officer Igor Bederov. Tsargrad.tv.
“The attackers “pierce” the original phone number, find the original donor profile of the VIP himself, and then create a similar nickname, or even use a profile with a single photo without a nickname,” Bederov said.
Following the fake profile, the fraudster writes a letter to the person on behalf of the management, warning them that a call will come soon and recommending them to take the specified actions. Including – name all the requested data, transfer money, etc.
Bederov stated that it is easy to believe attackers due to the messaging application’s features that allow you to hide your phone number. As an example, he cited Whatsapp, where it is impossible to implement such a plan; Even if you upload a photo of the company’s general manager, it will be obvious that the message came from another number.
The IT expert notes that when you receive a message from management on Telegram, you should try to contact the real boss through a known person.
You can also check the ID number using Telegram bot – @userinfobot. According to Bederev, it can be used to obtain an updated ID, and if the user sees that it was created fairly recently, one can safely conclude that it is a scammer.
Recently, scammers have been using this method deceived Reutov mayoral employee – attackers defrauded him of 4.5 million rubles.
Let us remind you of a new fraud method that involves fake accounts of senior executives. reported Bi.Zone experts. It was noted that the fictitious accounts contained the full names and photographs of senior executives.