Personal data of citizens of the Russian Federation is confidential information that can only be accessed by representatives of government agencies. This is due to the fact that their illegal receipt and use is the basis for many fraudulent schemes, the implementation of which can cause significant financial losses for citizens.
Many citizens know that they should carefully monitor the safety of their personal data, especially for those indicated in the main document - the passport. However, their list is much wider. For example, these are INN and SNILS, which are available to almost every person living and working in Russia. Information about these numbers is of interest to various scammers and swindlers, who use them in a variety of criminal schemes.
General information about SNILS
The individual personal account insurance number, or SNILS for short, is a citizen’s identifier in the compulsory pension insurance system. It is to this number that employers transfer so-called insurance contributions for their employees to the pension fund. In accordance with the legislation, SNILS is assigned to all Russian citizens from birth, and to foreigners upon the fact of working in our country.
Until April 1, 2022, upon registration in the compulsory pension insurance system, citizens were issued special green plastic cards. However, after this date their issuance was stopped, although those that are in the hands of the population can be presented at the place of request.
Why and why they go to apartments from non-state pension funds
There are often situations when an NPF agent begins to refer to Federal Laws (hereinafter referred to as Federal Laws) to increase the number of clients, including Federal Law-167. Citizens unknowingly trust strangers and sign unknown documents.
- Show the client the ID. In addition, the agent must have the following documents with him:
- passport;
- power of attorney of the fund;
- NPF license;
- Promotional Products;
- insurance rules of non-state pension funds;
- information about the rights of a potential client.
- Carry out explanatory work on transferring the accumulated part to a specific non-state pension fund.
- Must leave a receipt for acceptance of the OPS agreement and application.
- Provide the client with one copy of the signed document.
Why do scammers need a SNILS number?
The insurance number in the pension insurance system is quite specific. It is issued to citizens once and for life. It should be understood that this number alone will not allow fraudsters to carry out large-scale shadow operations.
In most cases, this type of personal data is collected for the purpose of signing fictitious contracts and illegally disposing of funds placed in pension accounts. For example, to transfer them from one non-state fund to another without the will of a citizen.
In addition, SNILS can be used as registration data for various services, including for opening fictitious electronic wallets.
The insurance pension account number cannot be used for the purpose of stealing funds from a citizen’s bank accounts, as well as for obtaining loans to him from financial institutions.
Attention! The only thing scammers can really do if they know the SNILS number is to apply for a microloan online if, in addition to the insurance certificate, they have the victim’s passport details.
How do scammers collect numbers?
Unscrupulous citizens use various tricks and tricks in order to obtain information about SNILS. It should be noted that for the most part their actions cannot be qualified as a criminal offense, since the methods they use require the voluntary consent of the subjects of personal data to transfer the necessary information to them.
Let's look at the most common ways to obtain insurance numbers.
Collection of data on behalf of the pension fund
Quite often , scammers go around the apartments and houses of citizens, where, posing as employees of the state pension fund, they declare the need to submit certain applications with the obligatory indication of SNILS.
As a rule, citizens are quite loyal to such visits and willingly sign the papers offered to them. This is due to the fact that the pension system in Russia is constantly being reformed, various kinds of changes often occur in it, so many simply do not have sufficient knowledge in the field of pension legislation.
Participation in fake opinion polls
Often, scammers pose as employees of various agencies conducting sociological surveys. At the same time, they ask you to fill out certain forms, where, among other things, SNILS is indicated.
Important! Most of the methods of real opinion polls assume the anonymity of respondents, without indicating the pension insurance number, tax identification number and other personal data.
Undoubtedly, the list of methods for collecting SNILS is much wider, since every year scammers come up with new deception schemes. However, the ones mentioned above are the most common and universal.
Talion 01 Dec 2022
I received a letter from my HOA in which they demand that I provide my SNILS number to be placed in the GIS Housing and Communal Services.
They refer to Article 6 and Clause 18 of Art. 7 of Law No. 209-FZ of July 27, 2014. "About GIS Housing and Communal Services."
I read these articles, but there is not a word there about the obligation of the HOA to post my SNILS.
The homeowners' association asked Roskomnadzor whether they have the right to collect information about SNILS from apartment owners. Roskomnadzor responded “evasively”, the essence of the answer is - Read the law. And literally the following: “Entering information when filling out sections of the GIS Housing and Communal Services to the extent provided for by the Federal Law of July 21, 2014. No. 209-FZ, does not contradict the provisions of the Federal Law of July 27, 2006. No. 152-FZ “On Personal Data”.
Here, as I understand it, the key phrase is: “ to the extent provided for by Federal Law.” But the law does not mention the word SNILS anywhere.
They probably need my SNILS to register me (without my consent) on the “government services” website, but I have no desire to be registered there.
So is it legal to demand from me information about my SNILS or not? Homeowners' associations claim that without SNILS they will be fined, maybe. They will not be able to fill out all sections of the GIS housing and communal services system, namely, place a list of HOA members there, because Without specifying SNILS, the system does not save the entered data and requires SNILS.
However, I read it carefully again
Article 6 and paragraph 18 of Art. 7 of Law No. 209-FZ, there is no obligation for the HOA to post a list of HOA members.
Actually, the question is, if I don’t give the HOA my SNILS, will the HOA be able to fine me for this reason?
Fraud schemes
Since SNILS is the main identifier of a citizen in the pension insurance system, scammers use it to implement illegal schemes in this area.
Thus, most often, employees and agents of non-state pension funds resort to deception . The fact is that Russian legislation allows for a transition from one non-state pension fund to another when forming a funded pension. In this case, only an application with the citizen’s handwritten signature and an indication of SNILS is sufficient.
For a citizen, this state of affairs is fraught with at least a loss of investment income from placing funds in NPF accounts.
SNILS is not a document that identifies a person, however, this number can be used to register for certain services and when creating electronic wallets. Thus, scammers create fake accounts and profiles for their own, not always respectable, purposes.
How pensioners are deceived by fake pension fund employees
According to operational data, the number of phone calls from scammers posing as Pension Fund employees has recently increased. The number usually belongs to a mobile operator or the call comes from another region. Fraudsters call pensioners’ home phones and address them by their first and patronymic names. This immediately encourages older people to talk.
It is important to understand that it is now not difficult to obtain information about the owner of a landline and even a mobile phone. The databases are publicly available on the Internet or can be purchased on removable media.
Important: Pension Fund employees call citizens in exceptional cases and, as a rule, only to coordinate the time of the visit. For communication, notifications sent by registered mail are used.
The main goal of deceiving pensioners by telephone scammers is to gain access to their personal account, persuade them to transfer money to another bank card, or set the proposed mobile phone number as a trusted one, which will allow the scammers to enter the pensioner’s mobile bank.
- 15 new laws that will come into force in 2022
- 20 everyday things that ruin your skin
- What assistance is available to low-income pensioners - benefits and payments
Incorrectly accrued payments
Scamming pensioners over the phone allegedly from the Pension Fund often concerns issues of calculating additional payments. The attackers call the pensioner and tell him in a stern voice that his pension was increased by mistake and there was an overpayment. The dumbfounded old man begins to get nervous. When asked how this could happen, there is only one answer: the money must be returned, otherwise the citizen will face a fine for wasting budget money.
The elderly man, in a state of shock, agrees to return the overpaid funds. To do this, the attackers offer to provide the details of the bank card where the pension is credited, supposedly for reconciliation.
Having received the data, telephone scammers gain full access to the pensioner’s account.
Scammers call about pension supplements
Telephone scams for money can have another option - an elderly person is entitled to an increase. Scammers call and say that the citizen should receive a payment that was not accrued on time (for example, a new governor's bonus). The appeal is that notices were sent to the home address, but the recipient never showed up at the Pension Fund.
Most often such calls occur at the end of the month.
The main argument when deceiving a pensioner is: if they do not have time to transfer the money, the elderly person will never receive compensation.
False employees of the Pension Fund of Russia offer the citizen to check the balance at the ATM for the presence of a surcharge. A person sees that there were no cash receipts, then he is recommended:
- Link the proposed phone number to the card as a trust number. This is how fraudsters gain access to mobile banking and can manage the money of the defrauded person.
- Make a transfer from account to card. Please note that scammers do not name the amount, for example, “ten thousand”. They work differently: enter the numbers “one, zero and three more zeros.”
- How to quit your job correctly
- 4 ways to reduce your risk of getting the flu as you get older
- How the rules for receiving benefits and pensions will change in October
Safety regulations
To prevent the insurance pension number from being at the disposal of fraudsters, citizens should take care to comply with certain security rules.
Thus, all interaction with the pension fund should be carried out exclusively in the branches of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, in the MFC or through the Gosuslugi portal. It should be remembered that its employees never conduct rounds of insured persons.
A universal rule is to carefully study each document before signing it , especially in cases where they contain confidential information related to personal data.
In general, it should be remembered that SNILS, passport data and other similar information should not be provided to third parties unless there is a legal need.
In recent years, various scammers are increasingly trying to fraudulently obtain the insurance number of a personal account with the Pension Fund of Russia. Despite the fact that significant attacks on citizens’ property cannot be expected in this case, illegal schemes invented by fraudsters can significantly affect the implementation of their pension rights in the future. In this regard, it is highly recommended not to transfer information about SNILS and other confidential data to third parties.
Talion 01 Dec 2022
You will never know what, how much and when you were presented with payment for housing and communal services!
Well, you were daydreaming. You will issue receipts both in paper and electronic form until I refuse. Half of our country lives without the Internet at all, there is simply no technical capability.
Soon everything will be simple: all debts will be written off from your bank card or bank account according to a writ of execution.
Do you want to convince me that the claim proceedings (after which the writ of execution is issued) will be carried out without the participation of the defendant in the claim and I will not know anything about it?
The bailiff is tired of looking for my account (card) opened in a bank in another region. And he won’t search; a standard request is made to 10-15 well-known banks in his region and that’s it. Will you try to keep it from my pension? You're sick of it, I pay 50% of alimony from there to my disabled wife and mother, and I don't have any property listed. By the way, the bailiffs have now accepted my petition to reduce the amount of deduction so that it remains no lower than the established subsistence level - 8,000 rubles. Go and claim
If you can fill out everything in the GIS without my SNILS, then fill it out, why the hell are you sending letters crying that you will be fined.
So it's still true. Are they trying to marry me without me? Register on the site without my consent.
Post edited by Talion: 01 December 2022 - 14:59
