New type of fraud emerges in Tashkent

Fraudsters are now creating fake profiles impersonating leaders and responsible employees of ministries, departments, and various organizations through Telegram, leading to incidents of deception involving subordinates. This was reported by the Main Department of Internal Affairs of Tashkent City.

According to the report, fraudsters open a fake Telegram account in the name of an enterprise or organization head and send an SMS to one of their employees. During the conversation, the impersonator claims that law enforcement agencies are interested in the employee and request certain information from the "manager."

Shortly thereafter, the employee is informed that a law enforcement officer will be in touch.

Believing the impersonator, the employee provides all the requested information to the person who subsequently contacts them, supposedly a representative of law enforcement. As a result, employees have been losing funds from their bank cards.

Authorities warn citizens to exercise caution: "Before accepting and trusting any SMS or other message, please verify the sender by calling or contacting them directly. If you encounter similar situations, we urge you to contact the Tashkent City Internal Affairs Directorate at 71-206-55-00 or 102. The identity of the informant will be kept confidential."

Additionally, it was noted that in April of this year, there was an increase in victims of various fraud schemes among Tashkent residents. In one such scam, an unknown person calls the victim's home phone, claiming in a panicked voice, "Mom, I got into an accident. It was my fault, and I'm in critical condition and need immediate surgery." Then, another unknown person picks up the phone, claiming to be an "investigator," and threatens that the victim's close relative is responsible for the accident, leading to potential criminal charges. Confused and panicked, the victim often offers to pay money to settle the matter, falling victim to the scammers' scheme.