- Статьи
- Internet and technology
- A double game: how scammers use the topic of obtaining a second citizenship
A double game: how scammers use the topic of obtaining a second citizenship
Fraudsters can use the topic of obtaining a second citizenship to deceive Russians, experts have warned about this. The attackers play on fears of the complexity of the upcoming procedures and the desire to speed up the registration process, promising quick and guaranteed solutions. For details on how scammers speculate on the topic of obtaining a second citizenship, what schemes to expect from scammers in 2026 and how to protect yourself from them, read the Izvestia article.
What is the topic of obtaining a second citizenship interesting to scammers?
In itself, the topic of obtaining a second citizenship is interesting because it opens up new opportunities for work, tourism, and even immigration, says Sergey Polunin, head of the Gazinformservice IT infrastructure solutions protection group, in an interview with Izvestia. At the same time, it is very attractive for fraudsters, since information about the procedure for obtaining it is often contradictory.
— As a rule, those who wish turn to intermediaries who know all the details, — says the expert. — At the same time, the cost of the services of such intermediaries is quite high, and the chance of trusting the wrong people is very high.
In addition, according to Sergei Polunin, obtaining a second citizenship involves collecting and transferring a huge amount of personal data, which also traditionally attracts intruders. In turn, Konstantin Gorbunov, a leading expert on network threats and web developer of the Security Code company, points out that the increased interest of fraudsters in obtaining a second citizenship is primarily related to requests from users themselves.
Some of them are afraid of the upcoming complexity of the procedures and are looking for an opportunity for consultations, while others want to speed up the registration process. Fraudsters play on the expectations of victims, promising quick and guaranteed solutions, the expert notes.
What schemes to expect for obtaining a second citizenship in 2026
In 2026, those who are applying for a second citizenship may receive fraudulent calls "from consulates" demanding to pay "fines" for late notification of relocation, predicts the head of BI.ZONE AntiFraud Alexey Luzhnov. According to the expert, the attackers can also create audio and video files allegedly from representatives of regulatory authorities.
— Another approach is to process documents for obtaining a passport of another country "remotely and without roots," says the Izvestia interlocutor. — In this case, scammers can ask for an advance payment, receive scans of documents and disappear.
In turn, Anna Lazaricheva, senior spam analyst at Kaspersky Lab, notes that the company's experts have already discovered a mailing list of letters offering to obtain a second citizenship, residence permit or residency in the CIS, Europe or America. Links from the messages led to the website of the company allegedly providing such services, as well as to the Telegram channel. The feedback forms of legal resources were used to send the letters.
The key fraudulent trend in 2026 will be the massive use of phishing and social engineering, predicts Elena Zavodova, head of the Audit and Compliance department at the Ural Center for Security Systems (UCSB). In particular, professionally executed phishing duplicate sites are expected to appear, imitating the portals of migration services from different countries and large law firms. Potential victims will be lured there through targeted advertising on social networks and search results, as well as by sending emails with fake notifications about the status of applications.
In addition, according to the interlocutor of the editorial board, attackers can more actively use hacked accounts in messengers for personal appeals on behalf of "employees" of government agencies. At the same time, the hype around the topic can occur on several digital platforms at once: aggressive advertising in search engines, closed channels in messengers with promises of "accelerated procedures" and pseudo-expert blogs, where a second passport is presented as a strategic asset.
— In 2026, we can also expect the appearance of fake mobile applications for "tracking the status of an application" — through them, attackers can gain access to personal data and banking applications, — the specialist warns.
What schemes have you encountered before on the topic of obtaining a second citizenship?
Meanwhile, fraudsters have been trying to speculate on the topic of obtaining a second citizenship for several years. In particular, according to Konstantin Gorbunov, earlier online there were schemes promising to obtain citizenship in 1-2 months, although the actual time depends only on government agencies and it is impossible to guarantee them.
"There were also fictitious investment programs, the search for fictitious relatives abroad with subsequent disappearance after receiving a deposit, as well as the forgery of a pedigree to issue a real passport — if such deception is revealed, deportation is threatened," says the Izvestia interlocutor.
Since August 2025, experts have observed cases where fraudsters called under the guise of lawyers, offering to arrange documents for relocation, Alexey Luzhnov adds. The attackers used a two-step scheme: first, they "clarified" whether the user had left a request. After that, they took an advance payment and disappeared. Such schemes can bring fraudsters hundreds of thousands of rubles.
At the same time, in addition to fake companies paying for non-existent services and other similar methods of theft, there were also schemes in the opposite direction, said Maria Sinitsyna, senior analyst at Digital Risk Protection F6. For example, a fraudster came to apply for a second citizenship, residence permit or visa to people who offer to pay with cryptocurrency for the provision of services.
For prepayment, he asked for the address of the crypto wallet and, after checking the balance, handed the victim over to a more experienced attacker. He obtained assets from this crypto wallet in various ways (from cryptograiners to phishing of crypto wallets tailored to a specific victim).
— Such schemes are aimed at people who want to get a passport for business or relocation, — says Konstantin Gorbunov. — The main risks are the loss of large sums and getting into criminal cases of fraud or illegal migration, which blocks the way to legally obtain citizenship in the future.
How to protect yourself from schemes on the topic of obtaining a second citizenship
In order to protect themselves from fraudulent schemes on the topic of obtaining a second citizenship, experts interviewed by Izvestia advise following certain rules of cybersecurity. According to Elena Zavodova, the main principle of protection is a critical attitude towards any proposals promising "guaranteed" or "accelerated" obtaining of a second citizenship.
— In terms of cybersecurity, it is necessary to develop a number of basic habits: never follow links from suspicious emails and messages, always check the domain name of the website you are redirected to, use two-factor authentication on all accounts related to finances and personal documents, and do not send passport scans or bank details by email or instant messengers. without reliable encryption," the specialist recommends.
In addition, you should check the legal status of the intermediary through official registries, the availability of a real office and licenses. It may turn out that, according to open data, he is declared bankrupt and has no right to hold senior positions, but his website continues to promise "exclusive accelerated procedures." Never transfer an advance payment in cryptocurrency or to individual accounts — all payments must be contractually made through a legal entity's bank account.
The interlocutor of Izvestia points out the benefits of self-study of the migration legislation of the country of interest on its official state portals in order to understand the real terms and conditions. It is worth paying attention to sites where services are offered: if advertising or advice comes through unverified channels, and contact information is limited only to a phone number or an address in a messenger, this is a serious reason to be wary.
— At the slightest suspicion, immediately contact law enforcement agencies and, if necessary, block your bank cards and change passwords for access to critical services, — concludes the specialist.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
