How to get the neighbor: scammers began to deceive Russians in house chat rooms
Fraudsters have become more and more frequent in deceiving Russians with the help of house chat rooms. They can both invite people to new communities (clicking on a link leads to account theft) and infiltrate old ones and "sell" dubious services there, offer help and gain trust. "Izvestia" found out what schemes are most often used by criminals and how to protect themselves from them.
Fraudsters in chat rooms
Fraudsters have become more likely to deceive Russians with the help of house chat rooms. This "Izvestia" told the coordinator of the platform "Moshelovka" Evgenia Lazareva.
According to her, experts mainly emphasize two threats related to chat rooms: quishing (stealing data and gaining access to accounts with the help of QR codes) and embedding in house chats. Both threats started scaling and spreading as early as mid-2023, but are still gaining momentum.
- Attackers use QR codes in announcements about new house, yard, or neighborhood chats. Or, for example, about the manufacture of intercom keys, the initiative of active residents - voting on the installation of a barrier, replacement of MSW containers, installation of ramps or repair of playgrounds. With the help of this tool they hack into accounts in Telegram or WhatsApp (owned by Meta, whose activities are banned in the Russian Federation. - "Izvestia"), - explained the expert.
She added that it does not matter to fraudsters which messenger to access - both are integrated with the contact list, gallery and document storage, store voice and video messages. All this information, once in the hands of criminals, is actively used by them.
- This makes it possible to deceive people from the phone book, send them AI-generated voice messages and dipfakes asking to borrow money, make fan mailings of votes for "nieces" in the notorious "children's drawing contests". All data is transferred to databases sold on the darknet," Lazareva said.
You are invited
One of the most widespread schemes that is now being used is allegedly new chat rooms for communicating with neighbors, lawyer Sean Betrozov tells Izvestia. At first glance it looks innocent - on the entrances you can meet announcements that invite you to join the "chat house". However, behind this is a way to lure people into a trap.
- Scammers may offer to follow a link that supposedly leads to a page to confirm participation in the chat or to register a new user. In reality, it is a fake page designed to collect personal data such as logins and passwords," says the lawyer.
As Evgenia Lazareva explains, criminals often "sew" into QR codes links to phishing sites, where it is required to enter payment data (for example, to make intercom keys). In addition, such a link can be used to download malware that allows access to personal accounts at "Gosuslugi" and online banks of the victim.
- Often with the help of such spyware, which the victim does not even realize is in the phone, attackers follow the person, read all passwords and codes, and then use them for their own criminal purposes, - says the coordinator of "Moshelovka".
In addition, adds Marina Probets, Internet analyst and expert at Gazinformservice, viruses can block access to files on the phone or use it to send spam. It is impossible to determine externally where the code leads, so it is extremely important to scan them only from reliable sources and use applications with the link preview function for this purpose.
Questionable services
In a separate category, experts call schemes where scammers themselves infiltrate chat rooms and weaponize them. There, they can make friends with residents to then request data related to bank cards, offer help and various "services".
In "Moshelovka" highlight several tricks that scammers "turn" in chat rooms:
- Selling a parking space. A person is offered to pay for a favorable lot as soon as possible, "before others are taken away". But after the residents give the money, the enterprising "neighbor" stops contacting;
- selling non-existent goods: building materials, household appliances or furniture at attractive prices. To do this, attackers most often enter the chat rooms of new residential complexes, where many people make repairs. They create the illusion of urgency, allegedly urgently moving and want to get rid of unnecessary things. As a result - again receiving prepayment and disappearance;
- repair services, installation of household appliances and cleaning services. In this case, fraudsters attract accomplices. One person places an ad in the chat room, then it is answered by the second, scattering in compliments to the "master". Their goal is to get money (prepayment for the service) or access to the apartments of gullible neighbors;
- charity. By posting posts about raising funds for treatment or other assistance to the needy, scammers take money from concerned residents.
In addition, adds platform coordinator Evgenia Lazareva, criminals can send malicious links in chat rooms, again aimed at stealing accounts and money. And then, when they achieve their goals or see a threat to themselves, leave the chat and delete their accounts.
How to spot a scammer
According to attorney Sean Betrozov, house chats have long attracted scammers - they offer simple and accessible ways to influence users. Unlike general channels on the Internet, where people are cautious and tend to verify information, a house or LCD chat room is a place where many people feel safe.
- Neighbors have known each other for a long time, there is trust between them, which means that an offer to click on a link or join a chat room is perceived not as a threat, but as a normal request. In this way, attackers find new vulnerabilities and use the psychological background of trust in "their" people," says the Izvestia interlocutor.
Therefore, the expert notes, one should behave cautiously in house chats - do not trust offers from strangers, do not transfer money to anyone, do not disclose personal and payment data, apartment number. It is best to limit yourself to communicating with those whom a person really knows, to solve all important issues personally. It is also worth refraining from publishing photos and videos with personal information, if they do not relate to the general issues of the house chat.
When entering a new chat room, you should understand that they usually do not require users to enter passwords or logins through third-party sites. If this happens - it is better not to join the community.
- You can distinguish fraudsters if you carefully analyze their behavior. Usually they are active, publish links and QR codes, offer favorable conditions or try to lead you to a conversation about personal data. You should be wary if they offer you not just to chat, but tell you about some promotions or special offers," notes the Izvestia interlocutor.
To protect yourself and your data, experts advise not to follow dubious links, not to scan suspicious QR codes and to use authentication on all your accounts, including Telegram. This will add an extra layer of security, even if attackers get the password. The password itself should be complex, and it is important to change it periodically, concludes Internet analyst Marina Probets.
