Pension top-up scam targets retirees for text-message verification codes

Scammers are calling pensioners while posing as Social Fund of Russia staff and requesting text-message codes to arrange a supposed pension increase, the People's Front's Moshelovka platform told RIA Novosti on October 10.

The callers contact older people and their relatives, claiming to work for pension agencies. They urge the recipient to submit an electronic application through an automated system to obtain an increase or a recalculation for earlier periods.

They then ask for a verification code from an incoming text message, supposedly to complete the application. Moshelovka warned that sharing the code can give scammers access to a Gosuslugi account or enable them to withdraw money from a bank account.

State pension indexation takes place automatically, the experts said. Genuine Social Fund of Russia employees do not request one-time passwords or codes for accessing Gosuslugi.

Moshelovka advised ending suspicious calls and independently contacting the agency through its official number. The Social Fund of Russia also warns about calls promising pension recalculations and demanding text-message codes.