Last week, as a result of an international operation, Latvian police apprehended a fraud network in Dnipro, Ukraine. Eleven people were arrested. A similar successful operation was also carried out by the Latvians last December.

Estonians are trying to catch up.

"At present, we have indeed reached the final stage of one set of proceedings, where we have issued arrest warrants for four individuals — including European arrest warrants — with the aim of bringing them to Estonia upon their apprehension and putting them on trial. This concerns investment fraud committed over the phone, which has reached pandemic proportions in Estonia today," State Prosecutor Jürgen Hüva said.

Millions of euros have been stolen by phone scammers from Estonian residents in recent years.

The Police and Border Guard Board has established a steering group of government agencies, banks and telecommunications companies aimed at reducing the damage caused by fraud.

Victims will be able to apply for the return of their money if the criminal proceeds of those who scammed them have been confiscated and transferred to the state, the state prosecutor said.

"When those criminal proceeds are confiscated and a connection between those individuals and the victim's loss is established, then in fact even after the money reaches the state's coffers, we can direct the victim to that fund and they can claim compensation for their loss from it," Hüva said.

In the near future, the interior minister will meet in Kyiv with Ukraine's interior minister to discuss fraud. As Ukraine is not a member of the European Union, cooperation must be arranged through bilateral agreements, Interior Minister Igor Taro (Eesti 200) said.

Changes to Smart-ID?

Estonia's Smart-ID solution has also come under criticism. The main security weakness of Smart-ID lies in the fact that its safety depends on users' ability to recognize phishing websites or verify the identity of the caller, says University of Tartu cybersecurity researcher Arnis Paršovs.

Taro said: "Now we will probably have to give up some of that convenience in certain places. It should not be so simple or convenient to copy Smart-ID from one device to another. There must be some kind of intermediary step — for example, using an ID card in between — so that it cannot be done remotely."

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!