15 thousand euros and antiques worth 5 million rubles: what a call from the "clinic" cost a resident of Kirov.

      A statement was received by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Kirov region from a 23-year-old resident of Kirov. The girl reported that after communicating with strangers over the phone, antique items and a large sum of foreign currency disappeared from her apartment.

      The scheme used by the fraudsters turned out to be unconventional. It all started with a phone call. The caller introduced herself as a clinic employee and offered the girl to undergo a medical examination. To register for the queue, a code sent to her phone was required. The Kirov resident dictated it.

      The next call came some time later. The woman identified herself as an employee of the "State Services" security service and reported alarming news: a bank power of attorney in the name of a woman who is wanted by federal authorities was allegedly found in the girl's personal account. The unknown caller threatened that the Kirov resident could be held criminally liable for cooperating with the wanted person and also promised a search warrant. The only way to avoid problems was to follow the instructions of a cybersecurity employee who would contact her via video call.

      Soon, a man on the video call forced the girl to conduct a "video inspection" of her apartment: he found out what valuables she and her parents had. According to the caller, the valuables needed to be reported to the investigative committee — then they would not be seized during the search.

      Next, the criminal stated that their employee would come to conduct the search. The Kirov resident was to let her into the apartment and leave for a while. The girl did just that: she opened the door for the stranger who arrived and went about her business.

      Later, she tried to call the "cybersecurity employee" to clarify when she could return, but the man stopped responding. Concerned, the Kirov resident returned home and found the keys under the doormat at the door. The apartment was missing her parents' antique items worth 5 million rubles and more than 15,000 euros in cash.

      A criminal case has been initiated, and an investigation is underway.

      The police remind: when communicating with strangers over the phone, one should not take information at face value. It is necessary to end the conversation and verify the information from an official source.