The Ministry of Internal Affairs has compiled the top 7 fraud schemes on free classifieds

The sale of a non-existent product or service is the most common fraud scheme on free classifieds. This was announced on September 22 in the Telegram channel of the Department for the organization of the fight against the illegal use of information and communication technologies (UBK) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.

"We analyzed all the crimes committed on the free classifieds during the week and prepared a kind of anti-rating. <...> Sale of a non—existent product or service (~46%)," the report says.

So, the attackers publish attractive ads, receive an advance payment and stop communicating. An example would be the sale of popular electronics (such as phones and laptops) at a discounted price or offers for building materials and furniture.

In second place is phishing using fake payment pages, which account for 12% of all crimes. The scammers send the victim a link to a fake page that mimics the website of a popular service. By entering the details of their bank card, the user becomes a victim of theft of funds.

The third place in anti-rating is occupied by fraud under the guise of an employer (8%). This includes offers of high-paying jobs, participation in product promotions on marketplaces, and other types of fake jobs that lure people into deceptive schemes.

In addition, fraud involving prepayment via SBP (10%), extortion under the guise of a refund (6%), data theft via remote access (5%) and social engineering (4%) are also found on free ad platforms.

The department noted that 9% of other fraudulent schemes are related to the tenant's refusal to return the stolen item or the sale of stolen property through ads.

They got off the hook: scammers refused to create fake cultural leisure sites

What is the reason for this and what new ways of deception are being introduced by hackers?

On September 22, it was reported that fraudsters are increasingly using schemes to deceive students, including using a "fake boss" scheme on behalf of university administrators and simulating attacks on important services. So, scammers can manipulate the names of such authorities as the FSB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.