GFCN chief warns of frequent cyber fraud, ‘calls from FSB’

TASS

MOSCOW, September 15. /TASS/. President of the Global Fact-Checking Network (GFCN) Vladimir Tabak is warning the public to be on the alert for continued cases of cyber fraud and "calls from the FSB."

The situation with fake news today is "quite complicated," and cyber fraud is widespread, he said in an interview with TASS ahead of the Dialogue about Fakes 4.0 forum.

"For me, even regardless of where I work, when ‘a Sberbank representative’ (a fake representative of Russia’s largest bank) connects you over the phone to ‘an FSB representative’ (a fake officer from Russia’s Federal Security Service), that is a somewhat strange situation. (This is a common scam tactic designed to gain the victim’s trust by making the call appear official – TASS) Yet a huge number of people actually fall for this. Technology is also advancing. Deepfakes, for example, are already part of the picture," Tabak emphasized. "Today, 64% of people surveyed by Dialogue Regions say they know what deepfakes are. The figure stood at 59% in September 2025."

The head of GFCN also noted that 80% of respondents overall report encountering unreliable information. "What does this tell us? It tells us that we can focus exclusively on raising the public’s level of media literacy and building an ecosystem of trust. Beyond that, responsibility will still rest with the individual, except in situations where law enforcement agencies must step in afterward. But when users encounter a particular piece of information, responsibility essentially falls on them," he continued.

"This does not change the fact that we must deliver accurate information quickly and clearly. We must be able to debunk widely circulating disinformation and reach a broad audience. The state must also take responsibility for informing the public, debunking false information, providing education, and working with government agencies so they understand how to counter it. But given how widely this kind of information spreads today, the only effective defense on such a large scale is strong media literacy and, ultimately, basic critical thinking about what users read," Tabak concluded.

The Global Fact-Checking Network brings together experts and fact-checking organizations worldwide. The association was founded by the TASS news agency, the nonprofit organization Dialogue Regions and the New Media Workshop to combat disinformation. More than 125 journalists from 55 countries already collaborate with GFCN on fact-checking.

The international Dialogue about Fakes 4.0 forum will take place on September 22 at the Russia National Center in Moscow. TASS is the event’s strategic partner.

Fonte: TASS