Cash will be cleared: new rules on cash withdrawal will reduce fraud by 10-30%

The new rules on cash withdrawals will reduce the number of fraudulent attacks by 10-30%, experts interviewed by Izvestia estimated. The Central Bank identified a number of signs of illegal actions when withdrawing money from ATM. From September 1, banks will have to restrict such transactions if they meet the criteria described. Among them, for example, more frequent phone conversations a few hours before trying to get money, and even conducting an operation at an unusual time of day. What schemes of deception can come to naught and how often ordinary operations of citizens will fall under such criteria — in the Izvestia material.

What are the rules for cash withdrawals that will be implemented in the fall of 2025

New rules for cash withdrawals will be in effect from September 1. Before carrying out such an operation, banks will have to check whether a person is under the influence of fraudsters, as well as whether a criminal is committing this action. The Central Bank has identified nine criteria for this.

If the transaction falls under at least one of them, the credit institution will have to introduce restrictions and inform the client about it. For 48 hours, a person will be given a limit on cash withdrawals — up to 50 thousand rubles per day. It will be possible to receive a larger amount only at the bank's office, the Central Bank said.

Among the signs of possible fraud that financial organizations will have to follow:

• atypical behavior for the client when withdrawing money. For example, an unusual time of day for such an operation, amount, location, or frequency.;
• an unusual way for a person to receive a cache is using "plastic", using a QR code or using a virtual card;
• a request to withdraw money within a day after receiving a loan, early termination of a deposit in the amount of more than 200 thousand rubles, or a large transfer of money to yourself from an account with another bank through the SBP;
• whether the bank has information that the transaction may take place without the customer's voluntary consent or that the card data has been compromised;
• changing the activity of phone conversations or SMS messages from new numbers, including messengers, six hours before the withdrawal of money;
• information from telecom operators or messenger owners about malware on the client's phone;
• the response time to the transaction request is too long (lag when requesting cash);
• five or more ATM withdrawals per day;
• getting information about the client or his card into the state anti-fraud system.

This list will make it possible to identify anomalies in customer behavior, according to the BBR Bank. However, given the dynamic development of fraudulent schemes, it is extremely important to constantly supplement and adjust this list so that it remains relevant and effective, since the current set of features can quickly become outdated and useless.

How much will the number of fraudulent attacks decrease

The new rules for cash withdrawals are another step by the regulator towards combating social engineering, said Denis Kalemberg, CEO of SafeTech Group. According to him, this will help in countering criminals, for example, when, under pressure from intruders, a person withdraws a large amount from an ATM in order to transfer money to fraudsters in cash.

—If credit institutions, fulfilling the requirements of the document, do not thoughtlessly block, but build a competent dialogue with customers, this can reduce the number of frauds by 15-25%, primarily by preventing forced cash transfers and withdrawals," Denis Kalemberg estimated.

In his opinion, the most significant measure will be tracking phone activity, as it can give a qualitative leap in the fight against social engineering. However, banks will need to integrate with mobile operators. In addition, tracking calls through messengers is not possible today.

The innovation will help at least limit the speed and volume of withdrawal of funds by criminals, said Alexander Bleznekov, head of the information security department of the Telecom Exchange. This is best used to combat phone fraud, when the victim is pressured, threatened, and forced to make a quick decision. The number of such cases can decrease by about 10-20%, the expert expects. According to economist Andrey Barkhota, these measures will help reduce the volume of malicious activity even more significantly — by 20-30%.

The BBR Bank expects a significant reduction in the number of such frauds. The main effect will be achieved due to the fact that the victim will have time to realize what is happening, and the credit institution will have the opportunity to intervene before the money falls into the hands of intruders.

A deception scheme can come to naught, where attackers substitute phone numbers and call allegedly from the bank, for example, from the 900 number, added Anna Gondusova, head of product development at Alfa Capital Management Company.

First of all, this mechanism will protect the most vulnerable groups — the elderly and young people, who are most often susceptible to psychological manipulation by criminals, said Alexander Bleznekov.

This will definitely not eliminate the problem completely, but it will make it significantly less widespread, according to an expert on finance and loans, chief operating officer of the Cosmovisa fintech company Dmitry Mikhailov. At some point, there will be a dramatic decline in the number of attacks.

One of the signs of psychoengineering is a call for the victim to withdraw cash at an unusual time or in a new location for the client. This is such a classic element when criminals literally dictate an action to a person and force them not to go to the nearest bank branch, referring to the fact that the victim had a data leak there and could not trust anyone there. Therefore, the very fact of timely detection of atypical geolocation can prompt the bank in time that fraudsters are involved in the scheme, Dmitry Mikhailov explained.

Will Russians be restricted from withdrawing cash

The signs indicated by the Central Bank will help banks to respond promptly to possible fraud and prevent the withdrawal of stolen funds, said the Vice President for Information Security at Dom Bank.Russian Federation" Dmitry Nikishov. According to him, nothing will change significantly for most customers, but if unusual transactions are carried out, you will have to contact the bank branch in case of restrictions.

Undoubtedly, the measures will help to cut off some of the fraudulent activities, but they are likely to create difficulties for the bank's customers, warned Anna Gondusova from Alfa-Capital Management Company. Atypical withdrawals are a reasonable criterion, but it is unclear how this will be applied. For example, anyone on vacation or being in another region may want to withdraw funds.

Each of these cases can be called uncharacteristic, said Vladimir Ulyanov, head of the Zecurion analytical center. In addition, for some Russians who have almost stopped using cash, it will be difficult to create profiles of typical transactions.

— As a result, people may face restrictions and inconveniences of using their own funds. If there are many cases or if serious restrictions are imposed on cash withdrawals, this may provoke an outflow of money from accounts in the format of preventive cashing "just in case," Vladimir Ulyanov said.

In addition, in today's realities, when mobile Internet failures occur periodically, many people prefer to use cash due to concerns that card payments may not go through, Denis Kalemberg from SafeTech Group recalled. Therefore, it is extremely important that solutions are based not only on algorithms, but also on the bank's live contact with the client.

The factor that wreaks havoc in modeling the population's demand for cash is the operational risks that have arisen as a result of disruptions in the Internet and mobile network, economist Andrei Barkhota agreed. Here, restrictions on cash withdrawals against the background of suspected fraud can be annoying. In these cases, it is necessary to provide an ATM withdrawal option in case of a pre-order and an urgent withdrawal within limited amounts. The main condition should be the predictability of the client's behavior. And banks, in turn, can begin to develop cash delivery services at home.