Russia’s Interior Ministry Warns Scammers Now Orchestrate Victims to Sell Property, Take Out Loans

Overview

• New ministry guidance says criminals carefully direct victims through steps to liquidate movable and immovable property.
• Schemes increasingly include arranging loans and microfinance agreements in the victims’ names.
• Many approaches begin under the pretext of helping recover previously stolen funds, according to the press service.
• Per officials, perpetrators often obtain remote control of phones via malicious APKs or applications for tokenized bank cards.
• Authorities report a rise in such incidents and classify them as offenses affecting public safety and public order.