Report estimates Ukraine scam industry at CHF1 billion monthly

A report by Swiss broadcaster SRF says Ukraine’s telephone and online fraud industry generates an estimated CHF1 billion a month and targets victims in about 30 countries, including Switzerland.

In the Swiss canton of St Gallen, authorities recorded at least six complaints of telephone fraud in August alone. Several investigations led to Ukraine. In the latest case, a 93-year-old man reported an alleged fraud attempt in early September. Police arrested a 38-year-old Ukrainian national who allegedly travelled to Switzerland as a courier to collect money the victim was expected to hand over to the fraudsters.

According to a report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, around 60,000 people work in fraud call centres in Ukraine. Fedir Sydoruk, a co-author of the report, told RSI, the Italian-language broadcaster, that the number could be as high as 100,000, roughly the size of Ukraine’s banking workforce.

Sydoruk said the first large fraud call centres emerged in the 2010s and expanded sharply after Russia’s full-scale invasion. The difficult economic situation facing many young Ukrainians and the ease of setting up such operations helped drive the growth, he said. He also attributed some responsibility to the authorities.

Some call centres were initially viewed by some people as a form of patriotic activity because many scams targeted Russian citizens and were seen as indirectly serving Ukrainian security interests. Russian media have repeatedly reported cases in which fraudsters pressured Russian nationals to work for Ukrainian intelligence services.

Sydoruk warned against reducing the phenomenon to Russia. Victims come from about 30 countries, including Switzerland, and many Ukrainians have also been targeted. Some receive calls from fraudsters several times a day, he said.

Alleged protection by officials

The issue has recently reached Ukrainian politics. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, known as NABU, accused the office of the prosecutor general of accepting bribes to shield a network of fraudulent call centres from investigation.

Prosecutor General Ruslan Krawtschenko was at the centre of the allegations and subsequently submitted his resignation. The full scope of the affair remains unclear.

Sydoruk said the case could be only the tip of the iceberg. He alleged that almost all Ukrainian police and justice authorities were involved in the call centre operations. He expressed doubt that the current scandal would lead to fundamental changes, saying he was not optimistic.