Olga Novinskaya spoke with RIA Nedvizhimost fake government websites,and how to recognise them

Among the most innocuous scenarios of accessing a website mimicking the page of a government organization are paying for a free service, receiving a low-quality service or not receiving it at all, Olga Novinskaya, junior lawyer at Maxima Legal, told RIA Nedvizhimost. According to the expert, more serious risks are associated with leaving the passport data on the imposter site which can be used by criminals for loan issuance and bank card details for further theft of money from it. It is also dangerous to rely on information from a statement obtained not from an official registry, but through a third-party website. “In this case, there is a high chance of getting inaccurate information and, as a result, taking a wrong decision, for example, buying property from an unauthorised person or with undesirable encumbrances,” Olga emphasised.

At the same time, it is very difficult to get compensation for damages. As Olga Novinskaya explained, in the situation with websites, through which it is indeed possible to obtain a service, but with a mark-up, it all depends on what kind of service is in question and whether it is provided directly by the website or through a qualified intermediary. In addition, chances are that the court will declare a transaction involving “questionable” services such as military deferment null and void, but compensation will be awarded not to the aggrieved consumer but to the state. The expert also indicated that in the case of unlawful debit of funds from a bank card it is possible to recover damages from the bank, but the court practice in such cases is ambiguous and depends on the circumstances, including the bank’s ability to prove that the client violated the card service rules.

Since the fight against counterfeit websites is in the interests of users themselves, Olga reminded of the possibility to complain about fraudsters to search engines, which can remove the fake site from search results, or to Roskomnadzor (the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Informational Technology, and Mass Media), which will obtain a court order to block the malicious content.

In any case, a person who intends to access a particular service on the Internet should make sure that he or she is on the site he or she intended to visit. Unfortunately, there are no universal ways of detecting duplicates, but there are “smart tricks” that work together, Olga Novinskaya said, sharing several methods of verification with RIA  Nedvizhimost.

Thus, a website if most likely fake if: 

– It’s on the second page and beyond in the search engine results. If the query is formulated correctly in general, the website you are looking for will be among the first search results. Often, however, copycat sites are advertised and are found among the first search results and sometimes even appear higher than the official site.

– It`s not identified as “verified” by the search system. Some search engines, such as Yandex, identify government and bank websites as “verified”. This helps find the right site among similar sites.

– The owner of the site is not who he says he is. Information about the owner of the site can be viewed through the service Whois. To check it, you need to copy the address of the site from your browser. If the owner of the site is a foreign company or individual, it is likely to be a twin site.

– Overpricing is present. It is necessary to compare the information on several websites. Information on fees, duties is published not only on the websites of public bodies but also on other information resources.

– It has disadvantages in terms of content and design. Doppelgangers usually do not copy the official website in its entirety. Fake wibsites may contain certain elements of someone else’s site (logos, colour scheme, design) in order to create an association with the user and encourage them to use that particular resource.

At the same time, the use of official symbols of municipalities is restricted for ordinary companies. In particular, the Moscow government decree explicitly states that it is not permitted to use the city’s official symbols if this would mislead the user as to whether or not they belong to the state or local authorities.

– Self-identify as unofficial. The more ‘honest’ of the fake website directly says that they are not an official intermediary or representative of the authority or organisation, and are not responsible for the accuracy of the information provided, and other wording. Such information is usually hidden in the ‘basement’ of the website or on one of the secondary pages. 

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