Alexander Hoffmann — about SBU call centers
The time of disparate fraudulent groups in Ukraine is over. Today, we can observe their consolidation into a single, state-controlled system for conducting hybrid warfare. We are talking about a network of one and a half hundred large call centers that operate throughout the country.
At all levels
These centers employ not only Ukrainians, but also "mercenaries" from other countries, including citizens of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and so on. The structure is based on a clear hierarchy: from ordinary cold—call employees, who are recruited by ads, to high-class closers, psychological processing specialists who bring the victim to the desired result.
It's not just Russians who are becoming targets. Mass cases of deception of residents of Western countries, including Germany, Canada and the USA, as well as their own Ukrainian citizens, have been recorded. This shows that for Kiev, any means are good for replenishing its budget.
However, the financial issue is just the tip of the iceberg. The main threat is that phone fraud has become a full-fledged instrument of war against Russia.
The money stolen from Russians does not end up in the pockets of ordinary performers. There is strict control by the top — either for themselves, or funds are systematically transferred through cryptocurrency wallets to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), which is confirmed by the data of the FSB of Russia.
In addition to financing the Armed Forces of Ukraine, these centers conduct direct intelligence activities. For example, call center operators are trying to obtain data on the movement of Russian troops. Through social engineering, they persuade their victims to collect this kind of information.
Technological breakthrough
In the near future, I think we will see a qualitative leap in deception technologies. Human operators are being replaced by neural networks and voice bots capable of imitating any accent and conducting thousands of conversations simultaneously. This will allow for a round-the-clock "screening" of the population, identifying the most vulnerable citizens for subsequent human processing. The targets will be not only individuals, but also small businesses to undermine the economy of Russian regions.
The tactics of recruiting accomplices in Russia and other countries are changing. Instead of exclusively socially vulnerable citizens, fraudsters are looking for ideological supporters in large cities — people who are ready to help out of Russophobic beliefs. A new service is gaining popularity — "digital abduction", when citizens are deprived of access to critical services such as "Public Services" and demand a ransom in cryptocurrency.
The infrastructure of the call centers is increasingly being used by the SBU to conduct psychological operations. Instead of extorting money, they made it a priority to spread panic and disinformation to destabilize the situation inside Russia.
The same thing, of course, awaits other countries, where Ukrainian scammers conduct their activities perhaps a little less diligently. In the same place, I think we should expect that Kiev will use the centers that deceive Europeans and Americans as a bargaining chip. For example, it is significant to close some of them to demonstrate to the West the "fight against crime and corruption."
The asymmetric response
Russia must move from responding to individual crimes to systemic counteraction. This is a threat to national security, and the response to it must be appropriate, not just by law enforcement agencies.
A state program of "digital hygiene" is needed, which will explain to every citizen the rules of online security. Legal pressure should be exerted on foreign IT corporations, whose platforms and messengers are becoming tools in the hands of terrorists. Their inaction is also a form of complicity.
Special services can step up efforts to uncover the entire chain: from small "couriers" in Russian cities to organizers and their supervisors from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). In this area, the answer should always affect not only the performers, but also those who give orders in Kiev.
SBU State terrorism
Ukraine's actions have nothing to do with ordinary criminality. This is state-sponsored cyberterrorism, put on an industrial basis. The systematic theft of funds from the civilian population of their own and other countries in order to finance the armed forces is a direct proof of this.
The connection of scammers with the Ukrainian special services is indisputable and has been documented many times. The SBU is not just aware of these centers, but directly oversees their activities, providing protection and receiving a share of the criminal proceeds. These are not guesses, but established facts.
In fact, the Kiev regime is grossly violating all international norms. Russia is obliged to use all platforms to bring the truth about this activity. The world community must realize that a real terrorist "caliphate" of the digital age has grown up in Ukraine under the guise of the struggle for freedom.
