The UK’s National Crime Agency has shut down an online platform that criminals used to defraud consumers out of tens of millions of pounds.
Roughly 170,000 UK consumers were affected by criminals utilizing a platform dubbed “Russian Coms,” though there is no known link between the platform and Russia. A report from Reuters indicated that the Russian Coms ring also affected consumers globally, though it did not specify nationalities or the number of victims.
Russian Coms was sold as a handset or a web application, but the platform also offered crime-as-a-service—for £350 (or $446) a month, Russian Coms offered criminals benefits like 5,000 minutes of encrypted calling, around-the-clock customer service, voice alteration tools, and even hold music.
“It is fantastic to read that authorities have stopped this fraud-as-a-service platform and prevented millions of consumers from becoming victims,” said Jennifer Pitt, Senior Fraud & Security Analyst at Javelin Strategy & Research. “But with this news, we mustn’t become complacent. With more of these platforms popping up and the use of generative AI-based deepfakes, even unsophisticated criminals will be able to create convincing phishing and impersonation attacks.”
Impersonating Institutions
Bad actors used Russian Coms to contact consumers and impersonate banks or credit card companies. The criminals often manipulated victims into believing their bank account had been compromised in a fraud attack and there was an urgent need to transfer funds to a different account.
“Callers may be polite, use industry jargon, and they may even recite the customer’s PII, but that does not mean the call is legitimate,” Pitt said. “Fraudsters are learning about common scam red flags, and they are changing their tactics to get around a consumer’s hesitation to give money or information.”
The Russian Coms platform was used in over 1.3 million calls that were made between 2021 and 2024, according to the NCA. Authorities made three arrests in the case, and two of the individuals are alleged to be the founders and developers of the platform.
A Prevalent Phenomenon
Fraudulent phone calls have become a prevalent phenomenon in the UK, and seniors have been particularly targeted. Over 40% of UK senior citizens have been victims of recurring fraud attempts, and phone calls are the most common method of communication in those attacks.
During a phone call, criminals can prey on consumers’ emotions and get them to make a mistake. In the case of Russian Coms, those mistakes were quite costly for consumers—the average loss was estimated at £9,400. According to the NCA, the platform was the latest proof of the methods cybercriminals use to commit fraud at “an industrial scale.”
“Consumers must all be skeptical of every communication they receive, and they should never give money or information to someone who initiates contact,” Pitt said. “Instead, consumers should contact the organization directly, using the contact information they already know to be true.”
