Until 10 years behind bars: who will be punished for fraudulent call centers

New rules on liability for the activity of fraudulent call centers have come into effect in Ukraine. Punishment is provided not only for organizers but also for those who knowingly help them operate.

Ukraine has strengthened liability for the activity of fraudulent call centers. Now criminal punishment may threaten not only the organizers of such schemes but also employees, landlords of premises, service providers, and those who recruit people to work in such 'offices,' according to the Cyber Police.

For willful participation in a fraudulent organized group, imprisonment for five to ten years is provided, as well as possible confiscation of property. The same term can be imposed on a person who understood the criminal nature of the activity but helped the group—for example, by providing premises, equipment, communications, information, or other services.

"Those who knowingly help such a call center operate may also be held responsible," emphasize the Cyber Police.

Separately, the law provides for punishment for recruiting new workers. Deliberate recruitment of people for a fraudulent group can result in three to five years of imprisonment, and for a repeated violation—from five to ten years.

At the same time, for some participants there is a possibility of exemption from criminal liability. For this, the notification of suspicion must be followed by voluntarily telling law enforcement officers about the group's activities and actively helping to uncover or stop them.

Earlier, the Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, Semen Kryvonos, stated that the spread of fraudulent call-center activity in Ukraine could be a Russian diversion.

Carthage: "protection" of call centers and arrests in the General Prosecutor's Office (OGP)

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