Pick Up the Phone: Expert Warns of a New Era of Scammers

Fraud today is no longer the work of lone criminals but a highly organized business operating like a well-oiled machine, complete with division of labor and motivational systems, according to Vytautas Bučinskas, Head of Business Assurance and Resilience at Telia.

“

Scamming today is no longer the activity of individual criminals. It is a business that operates like a well-oiled machine with a clear division of labor, motivational systems, and other attributes of large businesses.

Bučinskas explains that different groups within these criminal enterprises focus on developing technological tools, trading data, or running illegal call centers. This structure allows criminals to react swiftly to changes, constantly monitoring societal trends, leveraging new technologies, and refining their deceptive tactics. Their primary targets are human emotions, habits, haste, distraction, and the personal information individuals willingly share online.

As technological defenses strengthen, scammers naturally shift their focus to areas of weakest resistance: human psychology and social engineering. They employ manipulation, exploit emotions, and capitalize on carelessness. A common tactic is "pretexting," where a meticulously crafted false story is used to convince a person to take a specific action, such as clicking a link, revealing information, confirming details, or transferring money. These scenarios are designed to appear logical, convincing, and plausible to anyone.

“

Strengthening technological defenses, scammers naturally shift to where resistance is weakest – into people's psychology and social engineering, exploiting manipulation, emotions, and carelessness.

While older scams, like the "Hello, Mom..." calls, were often chaotic and improvisational, today's attacks are far more professional. "Previously, scammers dialed numbers manually, used phone books, and searched for specific names – we all remember scam attacks from correctional facilities that started with 'Hello, Mom, I'm in trouble.' Today, opportunistic attacks dominate, with calls and messages sent en masse, automated, to thousands of people simultaneously. Although the success rate of such attacks is only about 1 percent, the sheer scale ensures their operations remain profitable," Bučinskas states.

“

Previously, scammers dialed numbers manually, used phone books, and searched for specific names – we all remember scam attacks from correctional facilities that started with 'Hello, Mom, I'm in trouble.' Today, opportunistic attacks dominate, with calls and messages sent en masse, automated, to thousands of people simultaneously.

Furthermore, scam attacks are constantly evolving. As soon as the public begins to recognize one scheme, it is immediately replaced with another. "For example, previously scammers would impersonate telecommunications operators and immediately start speaking Russian. When we began to actively communicate about this, scammers recorded an automatic message in Lithuanian saying a specialist speaking Russian would contact you soon (as if justifying that everything is as it should be), and then they would proceed with the usual scenario," he recounts. Thus, crimes are no longer spontaneous but have become a continuously tested and optimized system.

“

For example, previously scammers would impersonate telecommunications operators and immediately start speaking Russian. When we began to actively communicate about this, scammers recorded an automatic message in Lithuanian saying a specialist speaking Russian would contact you soon (as if justifying that everything is as it should be), and then they would proceed with the usual scenario.