A pensioner in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky lost nearly two million rubles to scammers who convinced him his building's intercom was being replaced, according to the press service of the regional Interior Ministry department.
The scammers first called the man claiming to be employees of his management company, warning him about an intercom replacement. After confirming his personal details, they asked him to read out a confirmation code sent to him by SMS.
Second call added pressure
He was then contacted by people claiming to represent the Gosuslugi public services portal, who told him his account had been hacked and that unknown people were trying to access his savings. To supposedly protect his money, they told him to transfer it to "safe" accounts. Following the instructions, the man lost 1.94 million rubles.
Police have opened a criminal fraud case, which carries a sentence of up to ten years in prison. The suspects are still being sought.
Authorities had previously warned Russians about this intercom-replacement scam, in which victims are told to call a management company hotline and are then contacted by people posing as security officials who accuse them of financing Ukrainian forces.
