Pay the fine: how scammers deceive Russians with the help of the SBP
Fraudsters have devised a new scheme to deceive Russians, in which they urge them to repay fines and penalties using the Prompt Payment System (PPS). They send people "official letters" from the agencies, in which they inform them about debts and threaten them with fines and seizure of property in case of non-payment. "Izvestia" found out how such scenarios work.
A trick with fines
Fraudsters have come up with another scheme to deceive Russians - this time with the help of the system of rapid payments (SBP). This was told by the deputy of the State Duma Sergei Gavrilov.
According to him, criminals send messages to people with an offer to pay fines and penalties through the SBP. The notification says that a person has overdue payments, indicates a specific amount and attaches a QR code or a link to go to payment. Different legislative acts can be cited for persuasiveness.
That's why, the deputy has noted, some people don't check the information and send them money. Sometimes they are pushed by offers of discounts that are valid "only now and with this form of payment".
Gavrilov urged Russians not to respond to such messages. And in general to be more careful when paying for any purchases on the Internet through SBP - so may be offered links or QR codes that contain incorrect data about the recipient.
"In addition, the SBP does not provide for the automatic calculation of penalties or fines. Any information on debts should be checked through official sources, such as a personal account on the website of the Federal Tax Service or the portal of state services. If you see links or QR codes in the notification, you should make sure that they lead to the official resource before making a payment," the Duma deputy emphasized.
Tax schemes
As Alla Khrapunova, curator of the People's Front platform "Moshelovka", says in a conversation with Izvestia, the legend of unpaid fines, taxes and penalties has existed for a long time. The main surge is noted in the period from November to January each year, since December 1 is the established deadline for paying taxes in the Russian Federation, and the message about the presence of any discrepancies or arrears causes people to trust.
- Usually such messages are sent to the victim's e-mail account. The letter is designed to look as much as possible like an official mailing from the Federal Tax Service. And the letters are sent sometimes on behalf of the alleged Tax Inspectorate, sometimes - FSSP, - says Khrapunova.
The text of such letters always contains a mention of responsibility for non-payment of taxes and an appeal to pay off the debt as soon as possible. Also, says lawyer Sean Betrozov, they may contain various threats such as: "You need to pay the tax debt of 15 thousand rubles by the end of the day, otherwise the property will be seized". After all, criminals are well aware that many people do not understand the complexities of tax or administrative legislation and are afraid of any punishment.
It is offered to pay the "fine" via a link or a QR code. In most cases the links are phishing, lead to a fake site or lead to the infection of the victim's gadget with malicious software. As a result, fraudsters get data on bank details or access to the contents of the phone (computer). And they can steal both a person's money and valuable personal data.
Through SBP
Schemes of deception associated with SBP are also recorded quite often, adds Marina Probets, Internet analyst at Gazinformservice. A person may receive various fake documents - notices of fines, credit or tax arrears. Seeing the "official message" and wanting to quickly solve the problem, the victim scans the code and falls for the ruse.
Alla Khrapunova notes that in case of paying something through the SBP it is necessary to take into account two points. The first one is that the QR code from SBP is unique, it is issued only at the request of the bank, which serves the payment point, and it is impossible to fake it. At the same time a person can check the payment data and after that confirm the payment - all the information is opened after opening the code. And the second - the security of payments, like SBP transfers, is ensured by three parties: the Bank of Russia, the National Payment Card System (NPCS) and, of course, the participating banks.
- Therefore, we can assume that the victims of such deception are simply inattentive. Now, of course, many people are in a hurry and do not pay enough attention to both the messages from the bank (and they often contain important information) and the content of the "windows" preceding payments," says the Izvestia interlocutor.
According to her, fraudsters use the payment tool in the form of SBP, because transfers within it are free. After all, if the transfer will be through banks, there is a risk of establishing a commission, and this will raise questions from the payer.
Methods of protection
As Alla Khrapunova notes, the main rule of defense against such schemes is to check the data on the debt on the sites in the official applications of the Federal Tax Service or the portal "Gosusgoservices". Letters sent to e-mail, and even more so messages in messenger should never be a source of information sufficient for money transfer. And, of course, you should not follow links from them.
- If there is no information about the debt in your personal account, most likely you are dealing with fraudsters, it is better not to start communicating with them, - adds lawyer Sean Betrozov.
In general, with any payment through the SBP experts advise to always check the sender of the payment. Regardless of the source, it is better to independently contact the organization (bank, "Gosuservices", etc.), on behalf of which allegedly comes the request to confirm information about the debt.
- Remember that real organizations will never demand immediate payment through the SBP without providing sufficient confirmation, " says Internet analyst Marina Probets.
In case a person has already made a payment to a suspicious account, lawyer Betrozov advises to contact the bank immediately. In some cases, the money can be returned, if it has not yet been withdrawn by fraudsters. You should also write a statement to the police, providing all the evidence: correspondence, receipts, screenshots.
- Appealing to Roskomnadzor can also help: they can block the fraudulent resource. The main thing is that you should not hesitate to report such cases. The more people know about fraudulent schemes, the more difficult it will be for attackers to find victims," concludes the lawyer.
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