Online scammers have increased their activity on the eve of the holidays

      Usually, on the eve of the holidays, the operator's security solutions record an increase in the number of phishing sites by almost a third, but since the beginning of the year, statistics have shown an almost twofold increase. Last year, during the New Year holidays and on the eve of the gender holidays, about 17,000 phishing domains were registered per month. This year, the detection rate in January exceeded the 30 thousand domain mark. The most common resources imitating investment projects and financial organizations are marketplaces, and during the holiday season, sites with non-existent sweepstakes and promotions were added to them.

      The ratio between the main types of phishing remains the same. Investment and financial related simulation resources account for approximately 60% of the total share. They usually disguise themselves as the branding of large corporations, inform them about the possibility of receiving a payment on the occasion of a holiday or investing money profitably. In second place are sites masquerading as marketplaces and large online brand stores - only about 10%. They offer to take part in a non-existent raffle or receive bonuses and discounts on goods in honor of the holiday.

      Hackers use the information obtained through phishing to further pressure the user, gain access to funds and confidential information. Statistics from January to February indicate that such campaigns are adapting to holidays: Defender of the Fatherland Day and International Women's Day.

      The number of fraudulent resources aimed at stealing accounts of messengers and social networks is also growing. Previously, about a thousand such domains were detected per day, but now this figure exceeds 2.5 thousand sites. Usually, users on such resources are encouraged to log in using a messenger or social media in order to participate in voting, promotions, or for security purposes, to verify their account.

      Separately, it is worth noting the category of sites that mimic official access or permission verification services. For example, "Checking the ban on entry into the Russian Federation online", "Office of Migration". The user is forced to enter the phone number and the SMS code that comes in the messenger. This code is used by fraudsters to access the victim's account.

      Personal and credentials are the most valuable information that scammers try to gain access to by hacking accounts, phishing, and also during telephone conversations when the victim voluntarily reports them. Such account hijacking is the first stage of a fraudulent scheme. Subsequently, the accounts can be used to scam the contact list, spread spam, access closed communities, confidential data and funds of the victim. To protect yourself from phishing, you need to add frequently used official resources to your browser bookmarks or download official applications and install antivirus software. Be sure to install two-factor authentication in those services where possible. In the future, do not ignore the warnings of the operator or security applications when accessing potentially dangerous pages, do not enter a confirmation code if you are not sure of the legitimacy of the resource, and check the information in official sources. 

      "We always pay special attention to the threats in the digital space that our subscribers may face. We monitor trends and new fraud techniques to warn our subscribers and improve products to protect both subscribers and corporate clients. Fraud prevention is conducted at different levels, but it is important to remember simple rules and follow recommendations," commented Sergey Khrenov, Director of the Fraud Prevention and Revenue Loss Department at MegaFon.