Ukrainian authorities have shut down 94 fraudulent call centers and seized $2 million and 64,000 euros in cash along with a kilogram of bank gold, ScamTelegraph reports. Police carried out 411 searches in an operation this week that targeted operations luring victims onto fake investment platforms and talking them out of access to their bank accounts.
The investigation involved the National Police, Ukraine's Security Service, the Prosecutor General's Office and German police. Twenty-six individuals have been formally notified that they are suspects.
"Law enforcement officers simultaneously inspected the infrastructure of fraudulent call centers whose operators posed as bankers, brokers, and law enforcement officers, lured people onto fake investment platforms, and gained access to their bank accounts," the Ukrainian police said in a press release.
The seizures illustrate the industrial scale of the operations. Police recovered 1,794 fully equipped workstations, 3,336 pieces of computer equipment, 1,346 phones, 5,200 SIM cards, 90 bank cards, access tools for 20 cryptocurrency wallets and 22 vehicles, alongside the cash and gold. Call centers of that size are staffed and managed like sales floors, with dedicated teams whose task was identifying people who had a genuine interest in investing.
The scripts varied by target. In some cases operators posed as bank officers, telling victims that suspicious transactions had been detected and that their accounts would be blocked unless a payment was made. In others, victims were persuaded to apply for loans, hand over payment card details, and install remote access tools on their phones and computers. Some centers targeted citizens abroad, particularly in the European Union, steering them toward fake brokerage platforms.
Investigators also documented a second round of victimization. Some people who had already lost money to fraudsters were contacted with promises of help recovering it, then defrauded again. Separately, police said certain call centers marketed products as medical treatments for various diseases despite the products having no medicinal properties.
Those involved may face charges under Parts 4 and 5 of Article 190 and Part 3 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, carrying penalties of up to 12 years in prison and confiscation of property. Police are conducting a forensic examination of the seized equipment, which is expected to identify victims, establish the scale of losses, and produce evidence against the organizers, money mules and launderers behind the network.
What is a fraudulent call center?
It is an organized operation that employs staff to contact potential victims by phone using prepared scripts, typically impersonating banks, brokers or law enforcement. The scale of equipment seized in this case, including 1,794 workstations, reflects a business run with shift work and specialized teams rather than by isolated individuals.
What is recovery fraud?
Recovery fraud targets people who have already been defrauded, offering to retrieve their lost money for a fee or for account access. Ukrainian police found that some of the raided centers ran exactly this play, which works because victim lists are traded among criminal groups.
Why do fraudsters ask victims to install remote access software?
Remote access tools let an operator control the victim's device directly, allowing them to move money, approve transactions or open credit while the victim watches. Any unsolicited caller requesting installation of screen sharing or remote support software should be treated as fraudulent.
How can someone verify a call that claims to come from their bank?
By ending the call and dialing the number printed on the back of their payment card or on an official statement. Legitimate institutions do not require an immediate payment to prevent an account from being blocked.
According to BleepingComputer, the original report is available at https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ukraine-shuts-down-94-fraudulent-call-centers-seize-millions-in-cash/.