Expert warns of fraud committed in the name of teachers and parents of schoolchildren

A new scheme using the voices of familiar adults

Fraudsters may contact schoolchildren posing as teachers and parents, using fake voice and video messages. This was reported by Sarkis Shmavonyan, an information security expert at Cyberprotect, to Gazeta.Ru. According to him, attackers rely on a child's trust in a familiar adult: the message may look like an ordinary school request — to update an electronic diary or check exam results — and, hearing a familiar voice, a teenager does not always notice suspicious details.

What baits are used and what the expert advises

Shmavonyan listed the main tricks: requests to transfer money, provide a code, or install a file, as well as offers of 'easy money' for likes, reviews, or game testing. In the latter scheme, a teenager is sometimes first sent a small sum, and then asked to pay for access to tasks or hand over a bank card. A separate danger, according to the expert, are offers to sell or rent out an account — it could be used to deceive other people.

What to do if data has already been handed over

If a child has already given access to an account or handed over card details, it is necessary to contact the bank immediately, Shmavonyan warned. In cases of threats and blackmail, he advised keeping the correspondence and contacting the police. In the expert's view, technical filters do not build the key skill — the ability to recognize manipulation and refuse to comply with a request, even if it comes in a familiar voice; it is also important that a teenager can tell adults about what happened without fear of punishment. The article comes against the backdrop of an earlier warning about fraud involving fake voices of loved onesreported in October.