Beware of Fraudulent Chatbots Masquerading as Official Services
In Ukraine, fraudulent chatbots are emerging that aim to impersonate volunteer or government services. The primary goal of these actions is to obtain confidential information or steal your money.
Identifying and blocking these fakes is no easy task. The cyber police are working on it, but new clones keep appearing.
The chatbot 'Researcher' has 7 clones, while the 'Ticket Service' has 6. Some of these may not work, leaving you without the service you need at a critical moment. All these bots are dangerous, and their creators can easily modify them to steal funds.
How to recognize a fraudulent bot?
Here are some signs of fake chatbots:
● They look almost identical to the real ones, differing only by one extra character in the name.
● They lack a blue verification badge or have a counterfeit version.
● They respond in Russian or have a menu in that language.
● They may not function, creating the impression that government services are unreliable.
To check a bot, you can use 'Botchecker' on the Dovidka.info website.
What is Botchecker?
This is a database of verified Ukrainian chatbots, developed by specialists from the Center for Strategic Communications in collaboration with the cyber police.
“In three years, Botchecker has become useful for 100,000 users. Created in 2022, it helps quickly connect with citizens during crises. However, fraudsters have emerged creating fakes. Our tool allows users to verify bots and protect themselves from fraud,” says Mykola Balaban, Deputy Head of the Center for Strategic Communications.
How to use Botchecker?
- Enter the name or link of the chatbot in the search field.
- Get information about its authenticity and developer.
- If the bot is not in the database, report it to the cyber police via the @stopdrugsbot chatbot.
Be cautious! Don’t let the enemy deceive you!