A new type of telephone fraud: Russians are intimidated by the Rosgvardia and the police

Here is what political scientist Maria Snegovaya writes on her blog:

“Friends, please pay attention! A new type of fraud or intimidation. It is not yet clear what exactly, but very unpleasant.

A friend writes:

“I am writing what happened to me. So, at about 12.40 a call rang with the Moscow prefix 495. I picked up the phone and it started - some positions, the police, threaten a criminal case for insulting the authorities (plus the phrase - "What do you dislike about our government?!"). They also said that a summons had been sent to me that the Federal National Guard Troops Service (Rosgvardia) might come to the apartment.

I turned on the recording - I was told it was illegal and I would be held responsible for that too - for recording without warning.

I did not answer my questions. When I asked to repeat my name, surname, position, there was no reaction. Only aggression and intimidation: a criminal case, an article, a summons, now the Rosgvardia will arrive at the apartment number (and give the number of MY apartment).

I called all the lawyers I knew. We punched the number - Yandex says they are scammers.

Then I continue to ponder: where did they get this base, how do they know that I insult the authorities, how do they know that I am at this particular time (during the day!) quarantine and, according to the law, must send a selfie stating that I am at home + geolocation).

If this is a prank, then some kind of sticky monstrous prank. If scammers - what is the benefit to them? I'm still shaking..."

Judging by the comments of readers, this case turned out to be by no means the only one:

“It was the same. An investigator from Petrovka called. He called my name - he said that if I didn't answer a number of questions, an outfit would arrive, and all that. I said - let the outfit come, I will meet him. Asked where are you going to come? And the answer - "I won't tell you where" - made me come to my senses. But it was extremely unpleasant. I did not understand what was the point of all this. I struck the number - (mobile), went into the vatsap - in general, a different voice and a girl. Are they connecting to other numbers?

I don't think you need to pick up unfamiliar numbers at all. Let them write SMS, send summons..."

However, one of the readers tried to clarify the situation:

“These are scammers. An outline of two stages or steps. The first call prepares (“warms up”) the client and scans the situation. If the client is "ready" - "Rosgvardia" comes to the apartment, for example, and then, as it goes.

Often such warm-up calls come as if from the Sberbank 900 number. At the first stage (the first call), the client is bombarded with information about him and his alleged problems. If the client “floated”, then after a while the “manager of Sberbank” or “the bank's security officer” calls from number 900 and completes the divorce scheme. The first rule: as soon as I heard on the phone “they call you from the police / prosecutor's office / IC / security service”, etc. - immediately drop the call and block the number. Even my 80-year-old mother has already learned this and always does this..."

And this is really the only way out, as long as the state is not going to rid its citizens of such annoying and resourceful swindlers, especially since these specific scammers suspiciously resemble people in the service of the state.