The Ministry of Internal Affairs warned Russians about a scheme to deceive sellers on ad platforms

Scammers began to deceive sellers on digital ad platforms. This was reported on May 7 in the press service 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.

After placing a sale announcement on the platform, the user receives a message from an alleged buyer who persuades them to send a photo of the product in a messenger under the pretext that the picture does not load in the application.

"Transferring communication to messengers is necessary for a fraudster to bypass the security systems built into popular applications and ensure additional anonymity," the department's Telegram channel says.

It is clarified that after discussing the product, the "buyer" convinces that he has already paid for the product through the platform, and asks the seller to confirm receipt of funds. As a result, the seller will receive a message via messenger or email that copies the style of the ad platform.

"The link leads to a fake page where entering a card and an SMS code leads to the theft of money," the UBK of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia clarified.

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Earlier, on May 4, the department also reported an increase in cases of fraudsters communicating with Russians on behalf of the military prosecutor's office. It was clarified that the attackers intimidate the victim by the fact that some scammers allegedly gained access to bank accounts. In the end, the fake security forces ask to withdraw the funds and transfer them to the courier in order to avoid transferring money to Ukraine.