Today, fake calls from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, from false investigators, or from a grandson allegedly involved in an accident can no longer surprise anyone. The basic schemes of scammers have long been known even to pensioners. However, criminals do not sit idle. Literally every month they come up with new scams, and it is impossible for everyone to protect themselves from them. Society learns about this after the fact - when the first deceived people appear and the circumstances of criminal cases are made public. It takes a long time until this point, since victims often remain silent about their losses, which plays into the hands of the scammers.
In the language of scientists, such fraudulent actions are called social engineering. This term refers to manipulative influences on other people that force them to perform certain actions. All these manipulations moved into the virtual environment. In 2023 alone, the number of cyber attacks on Russians increased by 140%. Scammers use telephones, instant messengers, social networks and other methods of remote influence. In 2024, fraudsters entered the automotive industry with new deception techniques. Here are the new scammers' tricks that car owners may encounter.
The average Russian scrolls through ordinary advertisements for car sales on the Internet. The prices he sees clearly don’t suit him, and scammers’ bait immediately pops up in the form of targeted advertising on search engines or social networks. On the advertising banner, scammers point out the opportunity to purchase a popular car at a fraction of the price. The unprecedented generosity is explained by the fact that cars are driven by private individuals, bypassing all sorts of barriers using connections. The explanation could be absolutely anything. If the victim bites and follows the link, then scammers immediately start writing to her in Telegram (Zoom, Skype).
This is important: “There is only one way to protect yourself from this type of fraud. Experts recommend buying cars from private individuals or car dealerships, transferring money only after a test drive and completing all documents.”
Polite managers provide a link to an auction site where you need to select a car. Then the nervous “auction game” begins. The victim is suddenly told that competitors are ready to pay more and the bids of other buyers need to be outbid by transferring additional amounts to another country. All transactions are carried out in cryptocurrency. Usually the victim believes in a simulated auction and waits for some time for the results to be summed up. Then all the organizers, along with the site, disappear, having been satisfied with all the contributions of the victim. There are also dozens of fictitious communities on Telegram offering cheap tires and spare parts from Europe or the USA.
This is what scammers do. Initially, they acquire “merged” bank databases and begin calling victims. The phone receives an ordinary call, for which the criminals are already prepared, since they have the most accurate information about the person. During the conversation, they state that the hacked bank safe deposit box and the data from it were transferred to third parties. Fictitious employees of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation demand that all funds be transferred to a secure account and that they be paid to restore bank secrecy. Usually the victim declares that she has no funds and then she is convinced to sell the apartment. Now telephone scammers have taken on cars too.
This is important: “Experts say this is a favorite scheme of scammers. However, turning to urgent car redemption is something new.”
The victim is offered to sell the car, and the criminals themselves get involved in the repurchase or car buyback. A car businessman is told that an owner is talking to him, who urgently needs to sell his car for next to nothing. Next, the outbidder is sent to the victim to conclude a deal for the purchase and sale of a car. The victim is then sent to the bank to transfer the proceeds to the scammers. During communication, criminals gain remote access to the victim’s smartphone, apply for loans, call a taxi and completely manage the process of withdrawing funds. Manipulators act cleverly, sending the victim fake reports with the stamps of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, lulling vigilance.
Unrestricted import began due to gaps in legislation. The laws did not clearly define the number of cars that could be imported for personal use. However, back in 2019, a resolution of the plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 49 dated December 26, 2019 was adopted, according to which a commercial consignment can be understood as the supply of more than two cars with an exemption from customs duties. In practice, this means that the creators of a new fraudulent scheme are subject to criminal liability. Already in March, customs officers demanded that 5-7 thousand Russians pay an additional 300 to 840 thousand rubles for incorrectly imported cars due to the recalculation of the recycling fee at commercial rates.
This is important: “Criminals often registered cars under dummies without their knowledge. Also, cars were sold to citizens directly from temporary storage warehouses that arrived at legal entities and did not undergo customs clearance. Later, the buyer was faced with additional charges for customs duties and disposal fees.”
In this case, those who wanted to buy a car at a price that was below the market again suffered. Experts note that protection against such scammers exists. You need to buy a foreign car yourself and do customs clearance directly for yourself. If a car is purchased from an intermediary, it is recommended to verify the documents. The PTS, customs receipt order and passenger customs declaration must indicate the same person. The most adequate option is to purchase a car that was imported into Russian territory more than 12 months ago.
Emergency responders quickly arrive at the scene of an accident, assess the extent of the damage and draw up the necessary documents with lightning speed. Along with the package of documents, the victim is literally given an assignment agreement, according to which the rights to insurance payments are transferred. At the same time, formally everything looks legal and it is very difficult to present any claims to the dealers. As a result, the victim receives only a tiny part of the payments, the main amount is transferred to the scammers. Drivers are not yet familiar with this scheme. Usually they don’t want to be out in the cold for a long time and willingly believe criminals who promise a quick settlement.
This is important: “If you think that fraudulent traffic police officers have come to you, then you should carefully film the scene of the incident and go to the traffic police duty station for further registration of the accident.”
The Public Chamber of the Russian Federation revealed all the details of this scheme. Immediately after an accident, a potential victim calls the insurance company's hotline and reports the occurrence of an insured event. A selfish manager leaks all the victim’s personal information to the attackers. Fraudsters start filling out all the documents while on the way to speed up the process. They also use cars with special color schemes and yellow flashing lights - usually used by insurance company experts. In 2024, there is only one way to escape from such scammers. The only form that is signed by victims of an accident is the European protocol. There is no need to sign any agreements at the scene of the accident.
This is important: “The new phone scam is extremely effective. The deception system is constantly evolving and being refined. For example, fake servicemen can send a QR code to the victim, stating that with this method of paying for spare parts, the client is entitled to a good discount.”
The victim transfers money and soon comes to the service center to pick up the car, where they demand to pay for the work again. It quickly turns out that the real master recently received a call from the spouse of the car owner. The fictitious spouse quickly finds out the name of the car owner, his phone number and a list of upcoming work, while the car service workers willingly give out all personal data, since they are poorly familiar with the legislation on their protection. The mechanism of this scam has already been revealed. A group of criminals is setting up posts near car services. Their people take pictures of cars driving into the gates of the service station. Photos are forwarded to accomplices, scammers on the Internet find the owner’s data using merged databases and “gray” services like bots on Telegram. Victims often accuse car service owners of having criminal connections, but usually they are only guilty of allowing employees to disclose personal data and not promptly informing them about the inadmissibility of such actions.
(c) https://xn--80afdp5b4b.xn--p1ai/art...oshennichestva-v-avtomobilnoi-sfere-2024-goda
In the language of scientists, such fraudulent actions are called social engineering. This term refers to manipulative influences on other people that force them to perform certain actions. All these manipulations moved into the virtual environment. In 2023 alone, the number of cyber attacks on Russians increased by 140%. Scammers use telephones, instant messengers, social networks and other methods of remote influence. In 2024, fraudsters entered the automotive industry with new deception techniques. Here are the new scammers' tricks that car owners may encounter.
1. Cheap auction foreign car with mileage for cryptocurrency
This is the most new car related scam of 2024. It is built on the standard desire to buy a good car for free. In the current reality, such transactions are considered almost impossible, but people continue to believe in miracles. It is for this reason that a new type of fraud associated with fake auctions for the sale of low-mileage foreign cars from abroad has begun to gain momentum in Russia. Taking advantage of the fact that major automakers have left the country, people are being lured to websites that show them cheap cars. The scheme, in which they lose from several hundred thousand to several million rubles, works this way.The average Russian scrolls through ordinary advertisements for car sales on the Internet. The prices he sees clearly don’t suit him, and scammers’ bait immediately pops up in the form of targeted advertising on search engines or social networks. On the advertising banner, scammers point out the opportunity to purchase a popular car at a fraction of the price. The unprecedented generosity is explained by the fact that cars are driven by private individuals, bypassing all sorts of barriers using connections. The explanation could be absolutely anything. If the victim bites and follows the link, then scammers immediately start writing to her in Telegram (Zoom, Skype).
This is important: “There is only one way to protect yourself from this type of fraud. Experts recommend buying cars from private individuals or car dealerships, transferring money only after a test drive and completing all documents.”
Polite managers provide a link to an auction site where you need to select a car. Then the nervous “auction game” begins. The victim is suddenly told that competitors are ready to pay more and the bids of other buyers need to be outbid by transferring additional amounts to another country. All transactions are carried out in cryptocurrency. Usually the victim believes in a simulated auction and waits for some time for the results to be summed up. Then all the organizers, along with the site, disappear, having been satisfied with all the contributions of the victim. There are also dozens of fictitious communities on Telegram offering cheap tires and spare parts from Europe or the USA.
2. Selling the victim’s car for urgent car purchase
Almost every Russian has heard about the standard phone scam from fake employees of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. At the same time, social engineering methods have one important advantage for scammers - old combinations can be supplemented with new elements, making the trick completely relevant to modern times. It is important that it is almost impossible to catch scammers. They use proxy servers and operate through fake IP addresses. Purely physical attackers may be located in South America or the CIS countries. In 2024, a new type of fraud became known, in which, along with transferring funds to a secure account, fraudsters literally take away the car.This is what scammers do. Initially, they acquire “merged” bank databases and begin calling victims. The phone receives an ordinary call, for which the criminals are already prepared, since they have the most accurate information about the person. During the conversation, they state that the hacked bank safe deposit box and the data from it were transferred to third parties. Fictitious employees of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation demand that all funds be transferred to a secure account and that they be paid to restore bank secrecy. Usually the victim declares that she has no funds and then she is convinced to sell the apartment. Now telephone scammers have taken on cars too.
This is important: “Experts say this is a favorite scheme of scammers. However, turning to urgent car redemption is something new.”
The victim is offered to sell the car, and the criminals themselves get involved in the repurchase or car buyback. A car businessman is told that an owner is talking to him, who urgently needs to sell his car for next to nothing. Next, the outbidder is sent to the victim to conclude a deal for the purchase and sale of a car. The victim is then sent to the bank to transfer the proceeds to the scammers. During communication, criminals gain remote access to the victim’s smartphone, apply for loans, call a taxi and completely manage the process of withdrawing funds. Manipulators act cleverly, sending the victim fake reports with the stamps of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, lulling vigilance.
3. Fraud with recycling fees
Sometimes scammers don't limit themselves to calls and messages. Every year, individuals import hundreds of thousands of cars into Russia, registering them as cars for personal ownership. The new fraud was finally revealed only in 2024, when buyers of imported cars began to receive demands from customs authorities to pay an increased recycling fee. An ordinary person could import a car under a scrap fee of 3.4 or 5.2 thousand rubles. Many scammers imported dozens of cars for personal use, hiding the fact that the vehicles were imported for resale. Next, the cars were sold through advertisements to ordinary citizens, who later received “chain letters” from customs authorities.Unrestricted import began due to gaps in legislation. The laws did not clearly define the number of cars that could be imported for personal use. However, back in 2019, a resolution of the plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation No. 49 dated December 26, 2019 was adopted, according to which a commercial consignment can be understood as the supply of more than two cars with an exemption from customs duties. In practice, this means that the creators of a new fraudulent scheme are subject to criminal liability. Already in March, customs officers demanded that 5-7 thousand Russians pay an additional 300 to 840 thousand rubles for incorrectly imported cars due to the recalculation of the recycling fee at commercial rates.
This is important: “Criminals often registered cars under dummies without their knowledge. Also, cars were sold to citizens directly from temporary storage warehouses that arrived at legal entities and did not undergo customs clearance. Later, the buyer was faced with additional charges for customs duties and disposal fees.”
In this case, those who wanted to buy a car at a price that was below the market again suffered. Experts note that protection against such scammers exists. You need to buy a foreign car yourself and do customs clearance directly for yourself. If a car is purchased from an intermediary, it is recommended to verify the documents. The PTS, customs receipt order and passenger customs declaration must indicate the same person. The most adequate option is to purchase a car that was imported into Russian territory more than 12 months ago.
4. Fictitious avarcoms that take away insurance payments
The use of DVRs has made it possible to sharply reduce the number of car scams. A growing network of traffic cameras is also doing its part. Therefore, scammers who like to “work in the field” have to adapt to new conditions. The first scammers with the new scheme were identified in the winter of 2024 in Chita, but gradually their followers began to appear in other regions of the country. After a minor accident, the culprit offers not to call the inspectors. Instead, he calls fake emergency commissioners who have nothing in common with legal emergency commissioners. The culprit begins to fuss and say that he is late, and the situation is aggravated by the severe Russian frosts.Emergency responders quickly arrive at the scene of an accident, assess the extent of the damage and draw up the necessary documents with lightning speed. Along with the package of documents, the victim is literally given an assignment agreement, according to which the rights to insurance payments are transferred. At the same time, formally everything looks legal and it is very difficult to present any claims to the dealers. As a result, the victim receives only a tiny part of the payments, the main amount is transferred to the scammers. Drivers are not yet familiar with this scheme. Usually they don’t want to be out in the cold for a long time and willingly believe criminals who promise a quick settlement.
This is important: “If you think that fraudulent traffic police officers have come to you, then you should carefully film the scene of the incident and go to the traffic police duty station for further registration of the accident.”
The Public Chamber of the Russian Federation revealed all the details of this scheme. Immediately after an accident, a potential victim calls the insurance company's hotline and reports the occurrence of an insured event. A selfish manager leaks all the victim’s personal information to the attackers. Fraudsters start filling out all the documents while on the way to speed up the process. They also use cars with special color schemes and yellow flashing lights - usually used by insurance company experts. In 2024, there is only one way to escape from such scammers. The only form that is signed by victims of an accident is the European protocol. There is no need to sign any agreements at the scene of the accident.
5. Remote payment for car service services
Here is another new phone scam that has become the most popular among criminals in 2024. The owner takes his car to a car repair shop for repairs. After some time, a real car service technician calls him and informs him about the diagnostic results, as well as about upcoming work. After some time, the victim receives a call from another phone. The scammers introduce themselves as the real car service technician and call the victim by his first and patronymic names. The voice on the phone announces new faults and that the car may remain in the service station for a long time. The service center does not have the necessary spare parts and the owner is advised to bring it from them himself. The victim is also offered another option - he needs to transfer money to the serviceman on the card, he will go for spare parts and safely fix the car before the end of the work shift.This is important: “The new phone scam is extremely effective. The deception system is constantly evolving and being refined. For example, fake servicemen can send a QR code to the victim, stating that with this method of paying for spare parts, the client is entitled to a good discount.”
The victim transfers money and soon comes to the service center to pick up the car, where they demand to pay for the work again. It quickly turns out that the real master recently received a call from the spouse of the car owner. The fictitious spouse quickly finds out the name of the car owner, his phone number and a list of upcoming work, while the car service workers willingly give out all personal data, since they are poorly familiar with the legislation on their protection. The mechanism of this scam has already been revealed. A group of criminals is setting up posts near car services. Their people take pictures of cars driving into the gates of the service station. Photos are forwarded to accomplices, scammers on the Internet find the owner’s data using merged databases and “gray” services like bots on Telegram. Victims often accuse car service owners of having criminal connections, but usually they are only guilty of allowing employees to disclose personal data and not promptly informing them about the inadmissibility of such actions.
How to recognize scammers?
If scammers call you, then most likely they are “artisans” using someone else’s and already proven techniques. Fundamentally new schemes do not appear often; they are all described above. In this case, social engineering attacks are created based on fundamental psychological principles:- Sooner or later, all conversations come down to money. Remember that you do not owe anything to anyone, especially those who are calling from an unknown number for the first time. There is no need to transfer funds to a card or meet with couriers who plan to take you to the bank under any pretext.
- Tight time frames. The victim is given a mental deadline, which turns into an internal setting. Words such as “quickly”, “urgently”, “today” or “now” are used. It is important to go against the car scammers, breathe out and take a break to think about it. At this time, it’s worth calling your loved ones, a car service center, or even the real Central Bank of the Russian Federation.
- Stressful combinations. Money is the equivalent of labor, so losing what you have acquired is always painful. Telephone scammers are betting on the loss of funds, blocking of accounts, seizure of property, or the loss of a loved one. You are required to save, prevent a tragedy, protect or manage to help. Today, scammers on the Internet focus on saving money when choosing a car, spare parts or tires. Therefore, you need to periodically check the condition of your assets and the degree of their security. It is also recommended to make purchases in regular stores, without trying to save beyond the norm.
- Too many yeses. Scammers try to break through the protective psychological barrier, forcing the victim to agree. After three spoken words “yes”, you should think about what is happening, and it is better to immediately stop the conversation.
Summing up
In 2024, scammers and their services have new targets. They don’t just steal people’s money; they also force them to sell their car, apartment, take out microloans, and even cause harm to themselves or the property of others. Already this year, criminals will step forward. They will likely begin to actively use the latest digital advances and artificial intelligence. Substitution of voices and images of relatives, generated videos of acquaintances of potential victims. It is possible that new deceptive schemes will appear that are aimed at narrow professional or social groups of the population.(c) https://xn--80afdp5b4b.xn--p1ai/art...oshennichestva-v-avtomobilnoi-sfere-2024-goda
