According to the BI.ZONE research, there has been a significant rise in the number of bogus theater websites in Russia, Vedomosti writes.
“From June to August of this year, BI.ZONE specialists saw a tenfold rise in the number of domains of fake theaters: while at the start of the summer they discovered 32 connections to such resources, by the conclusion of the summer their number had grown to 351,” the message states. These sites have a similar appearance to genuine ones. They include a poster, a description of the performances, and a notice about the ability to purchase tickets online in conjunction with the epidemic.
“However, the victim, of course, does not get any tickets after payment,” the publication observes.
At the same time, the website of the State Academic Theater of St. Petersburg “Shelter of the Comedian” was used as a base for the majority of phishing domains, experts believe, since its interface is simple to forge and owing to the poor degree of cyber security.
According to Yaroslav Kargalev, deputy director of the CERT-GIB Group-IB department, the increase in the number of such sites may be caused by a new kind of fraud. In such instances, the assailant contacts the victim through social media or dating apps, asks her out on a date, and promises to take her to the theater.
The scammer then gives her a link to a phony ticket sales site, and she loses a substantial sum after payment. According to Olga Zinenko, Senior Analyst at Positive Technologies, the surge in the number of fake sites offering theater tickets is attributable to an increase in phishing throughout the retail industry.
