Dangerous trap on Telegram: Beware of fraudsters promising compensation on behalf of the government!

Another dangerous fraudulent scheme aimed at trapping citizens has emerged in the Uzbek segment of the Telegram messenger. In this latest scheme, criminals are trying to deceive people by claiming that a "new social compensation program" has been launched by the state to support the population.

The circulating fake messages claim that each citizen will be paid compensation ranging from several million sums to 50,000,000 sums, and even include fabricated comments such as "a family check yielded over 30 million sums."

The real objective of the fraudsters and the fake "gov.uz" link

Cybercriminals are using masterfully crafted psychological tricks to gain the trust of citizens:

• The trap disguised as "gov.uz": To avoid arousing suspicion, fraudsters mask and distribute the malicious link to look like the official government portal of the Republic of Uzbekistan — [https://gov.uz/](https://gov.uz/)...;

• Redirecting to a phishing site: When the link is clicked, the user is not taken to the official state portal, but rather to a fake phishing page titled "Official Compensation Registry" adorned with the State Emblem and Flag;

• Stealing cards and money: The page falsely displays that a payment of "30,250,000 sums" is ready, and to receive the funds, users are required to enter their phone number and bank card details (card number, expiration date, and SMS verification code). As soon as these details are entered, all the money from the plastic card is transferred to the fraudsters' accounts.

Important warning from experts

Cybersecurity experts and law enforcement agencies urge citizens to strictly follow these rules:

• Official compensation and allowances provided by the state are never distributed through unknown Telegram links or by entering an "SMS code";

• Never click on suspicious links received in groups and channels, and do not share them with your loved ones;

• Under no circumstances should you enter your bank card's confidential codes or the 6- or 4-digit numbers received via SMS on unfamiliar websites.