Break the bank: how scammers speculate on changing the key interest rate in Russia
The phishing activity of scammers may increase against the background of the September meeting of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the discussion of the key interest rate, experts have warned about this. Attackers can attack Russians with offers of profitable investments and deposits — the previous such surge occurred in June–July 2025, when a decision was expected to lower the key interest rate. For more information about how scammers speculate on its changes, see the Izvestia article.
Why are the key rate changes interesting to scammers?
Experts from BI.ZONE told Izvestia that the phishing activity of scammers may increase against the background of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation meeting on September 12 and the discussion of the key rate. According to experts, the previous surge occurred in June–July 2025, when a decision was expected to lower the key rate. In particular, the .ru domain zone has seen a sharp increase in the number of new domains dedicated to investments and profitable deposits.
Only 724 domains with the words "contribution" or "investment" directly in their names were registered in June and 693 in July. This is more than double the usual figure: since the beginning of 2025, an average of 290 such domains have been created monthly. This surge coincided with the adoption of important decisions on the key rate: on June 6, it was reduced from 21% to 20%, and on July 25 — to 18%.
—The attackers monitor the information agenda and adjust their schemes to deceive users,— explains the head of BI.ZONE Brand Protection Dmitry Kiryushkin. — And many citizens are concerned about issues related to the key interest rate and exchange rates.
According to the expert, scammers use this to make their offers look as convincing as possible. In fact, criminals are speculating on people's desire to invest profitably and save their savings.
What key rate schemes should we expect in 2025
Against the background of the September meeting of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the number of fake financial websites calling for profitable investments in various assets may indeed increase, Vitaly Fomin, head of the information security analyst group at the Digital Economy League, confirmed in an interview with Izvestia.
"There may be an increase in the number of phishing messages from supposedly official representatives of banks offering to open a deposit at high interest rates or take out a loan on preferential terms," the expert says. — In addition, there may be schemes offering to purchase assets that will not be affected by the rate change: gold or cryptocurrency.
As Vitaly Fomin notes, instead of "more favorable terms," scammers can also offer paid consultations from experts who, after analyzing a person's financial situation, will allegedly offer options to increase the profitability of their investments or invest in new products. In this way, attackers can force people to disclose personal and banking information or even transfer money directly.
If the rate, followed by interest on deposits, is reduced, it is most likely that messages will be sent in messengers with a proposal to "fix the rate," according to a data analyst at the RU/ Domain Coordination Center.Russian Federation Evgeny Pankov. And to take advantage of this offer, you will allegedly need to install a "special program", enter your card details or password from the Gosuslugi portal.
— A few months ago, the dollar's exchange rate against the ruble decreased significantly, — Vitaly Fomin reminds. — However, recently the exchange rate of world currencies began to rise, so scammers will offer to invest in this asset until it reaches new highs.
According to the expert, in September, offers to open a deposit of 50-100 thousand rubles at a high interest rate are quite likely, as many banks do. However, phishing links will lead to a fraudulent resource that can steal money and data from personal accounts of banks and the Gosuslugi portal.
What key rate schemes have you seen before?
Fraudsters have been using the topic of key rate changes for several years. According to Vitaly Fomin, the attackers had previously sent messages on behalf of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and other financial institutions offering to invest on special terms due to the rate change.
— Schemes were recorded when telephone scammers presented themselves as employees of the Bank of Russia and offered to transfer money to a secure account. People who believed in this proposal were losing money," says Izvestia's source.
In addition, as Vitaly Fomin notes, schemes with investment fraud were widespread. People purchased securities or cryptocurrencies on special platforms with the hope of making a profit on investments and stable passive income. However, the acquired assets turned out to be unreal, and it was impossible to return the money.
One of the most popular fraudulent tools in previous years was fake investment platforms offering "super profitable" deposits or investments in securities, adds Evgeny Pankov. A few years ago, there were massive phishing emails allegedly from banks and the Central Bank offering to "keep high interest rates."
— However, now there is a volume of classic phishing in the zones .RU and .The Russian Federation has declined — such offers are more often received in messengers," the expert notes.
Earlier, against the background of key rate changes, fraudsters often created phishing sites that mimic the web pages of banks or investment companies, agrees Alexey Korobchenko, head of the information security department at the Security Code company. Visitors to such portals were offered unrealistically high interest rates on deposits. Users who believed in such offers and entered their personal information became victims of confidential information theft.
How to protect yourself from key rate fraud schemes
Fraud schemes on key rate changes are aimed at a wide audience, with the older generation being particularly vulnerable, who are not familiar with digital banking services and monetary policy specifics, Vitaly Fomin says in an interview with Izvestia.
— In addition, attackers can harm people who closely monitor the state of the economy, looking for opportunities to make money through investments and bank deposits, — says the expert. — Scammers offer them more favorable interest rates, thus exploiting their desire for profit and luring money away.
Fraudulent schemes on key rate changes are aimed at everyone who has at least some savings in deposits or cash, adds Sergey Polunin, head of the IT infrastructure Solutions protection group at Gazinformservice. At the same time, small businesses that are interested in "loans at unique rates" may theoretically be under attack.
In order to protect yourself from such threats, Alexander Bleznekov, head of the Information Security department of the Telecom Exchange, advises not to follow suspicious links and not to open letters or messages from unknown or questionable sources. In addition, it is important to carefully check the addresses of the sites you are going to visit.
"The real websites of banks and regulators have official domains and are protected by SSL certificates (HTTPS)," the specialist notes. — Never tell anyone your passwords, SMS codes, or bank card information. Do not enter payment information on suspicious or unfamiliar resources.
It is necessary to hide information about the availability of savings and deposits from outsiders, as well as use the technical settings of banking applications to limit the display of the balance on the screen. In case of suspected fraud, it is necessary to immediately block cards through a mobile application or a call to the bank, and then report fraudulent websites and calls to the relevant services, the Izvestia interlocutor concludes.
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