The lawyer spoke about the new rules for combating droppers

Telephone and online fraud in Russia continues to gain momentum, and criminal schemes increasingly involve ordinary citizens who become intermediaries in the transfer and cashing of money. Vladimir Goncharov, a lawyer and a member of the Guild of Russian Lawyers, told Izvestia on February 1 about who the droppers are, what punishment they face and how not to be a link in the chain of scams.

"Such people are called drops or droppers — this is actually an intermediate link between the criminal and the victim. Sometimes a person doesn't even realize that they are participating in an illegal scheme: they respond to an ad for a part-time job, transfer a card to third parties, or provide access to a banking application. However, the account holder is still fully responsible for the operations on it," the expert explained.

According to Goncharov, until the summer of 2025, droppers were more often involved in general articles on fraud, but then the legislation was tightened. In June, amendments were adopted to Article 187 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Illegal circulation of funds of payments"), which introduced separate liability for participation in such schemes, regardless of whether the intermediary was aware that he was helping criminals. For transferring your card or its details, you can now face up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 300 thousand rubles, and the organizers of such chains can face up to six years in prison, a fine of up to 1 million rubles or forced labor.

The lawyer noted that, in addition to criminal penalties, droppers face long-term consequences: deterioration of credit history, account blocking, difficulties in finding employment and restrictions on bank transfers. The legislator paid special attention to the protection of teenagers: from 2025, citizens from 14 to 18 years old can open accounts only with the written consent of their parents or guardians if they do not have full legal capacity.

Conclusion: the price of dropper cards on the black market has jumped several times

How much can the number of such operations decrease next year?

Goncharov stressed that at the slightest suspicion of involvement in a fraudulent scheme, it is necessary to immediately contact the bank and the police, fix the situation and change access to accounts. He also advises contacting the Bank of Russia via the Internet reception or using the short number 300 and checking information about yourself through the Gosuslugi portal.

The expert added that droppers are most often recruited through ads for "easy money" and money transfers without experience or education requirements.

"You should never transfer card details to outsiders and return money you accidentally received using unknown banking details. The safest way is to apply to the bank so that the refund is processed legally," he concluded.

Andrei Lugovoy, First Deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Security and Anti-Corruption, said on December 18 that bank employees involved in dropper schemes should be prosecuted. He stressed that financial institutions can identify suspicious transactions and determine whether transfers are being made by front persons.

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