Gang in Chelyabinsk set up communication hub for social media access

Four people have been detained in Chelyabinsk who, on the order of foreign fraudsters, organized a scheme for unauthorized access to accounts of Russians. The operation was conducted jointly by the FSB and police.

Feb 28, 2026

Equipment like a SIM-box allows criminals to remotely manage SIM cards for fraudulent access.
Source:
Southern Urals Police / t.me

According to a report by the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on January 29, four people have been detained in Chelyabinsk, accused of creating a scheme to access the accounts of Russians on social networks and messengers. The group acted on the order of fraudsters from an unfriendly country. The detention was carried out jointly with the FSB.

According to preliminary data, the suspects responded to an advertisement for part-time work in a messenger. After that, they received SIM-boxes, batches of SIM cards, and money to rent apartments where the communication hub was located.

The police stated: «Employees of the police department for combating cyberfraud, together with the FSB, uncovered a rented apartment in which two SIM-boxes were installed. At the temporary residence, operatives also found and seized more than 340 SIM cards, a router, a laptop, and two plastic bank cards.»

The roles of the detained were distributed as follows:

two aged 20 and 22 serviced the SIM-boxes, activating and replacing SIM cards at the direction of «curators»;
a 23-year-old suspect worked as a «courier,» delivering SIM cards and renting apartments, which were frequently changed to avoid detection;
a 25-year-old accomplice performed the functions of an administrator, remotely configured the equipment, and dealt with financial matters.

A criminal case has been initiated against all the suspects for illegal use of a virtual telephone station. They face punishment under Part 2 of Article 274.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation — a fine of up to one million rubles (about $11,100 at current rates) or imprisonment for up to five years.