In 2021, cyberpolice stopped 422 online fraudsters
This was announced today, on February 11, by Ivan Tymoshenko, the head of the anti-online fraud department of the Cyberpolice Department at a briefing on the results of payment and ATM fraud in 2021 in Ukraine. He spoke about the work of cyberpolice in this direction, and also gave recommendations to citizens on how not to become a victim of such fraudsters.
The briefing was held at the initiative of the Ukrainian Interbank Association of Members of Payment Systems “EMA” with the participation of representatives of the banking sector, government bodies and business.
“During 2021, the cyber police received more than 48,000 complaints about Internet fraud. We have stopped 422 online fraudsters appearing in 2025 criminal fraud proceedings. At present, the pre-trial investigation in these proceedings has been completed, the materials are sent to the court for the selection of punishment for the attackers,” the cyber policeman said.
Ivan Tymoshenko noted that there are more and more cases when not individual attackers are involved in committing fraud on the Internet, but clearly organized and controlled groups. Over the past year, the cyber police exposed 13 such groups of scammers, including 53 individuals who committed 760 fraudulent acts.
Among the most common schemes are the sale of non-existent goods, phishing and telephone fraud, asking friends for help on social networks. Also one of the most common is the issuance of online loans in microfinance organizations.
“Fraudsters gain access to a SIM card, enter Internet banking and, using remote identification, open loans to citizens,” said the head of the department for combating various types of online fraud.
In turn, representatives of the banking institution spoke about the state of cyber fraud in the field of electronic payments and card payments, the trend of development of payment instruments in Ukraine, as well as about fraudulent equipment that is seized in ATM networks.
Ivan Tymoshenko provided recommendations to citizens and noted that the basic rules of cyber hygiene minimize the risks of suffering from criminal actions of Internet fraudsters.
“The minimum that needs to be done is to register a SIM card in your passport; disable the service of remote SIM card replacement from a mobile operator; enable two-factor authentication and set a secure password for Internet banking and smartphone login”, - summed up Ivan Tymoshenko.
Cyber Police Department of the National Police of Ukraine
