Fake Telegram accounts in the name of Nikol Pashinyan and the education minister: how not to get caught out
- Published
- Place
- Yerevan, Armenia
- Event date
- Past event —
Summary
The Armenian prime minister’s office flagged a fake Telegram account opened in Nikol Pashinyan’s name on the morning of Wednesday 4 November. According to his spokesperson, Melanya Harutyunyan, the account may send messages asking for information or urging people to act. The same morning, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports warned about fake WhatsApp and Telegram accounts of Minister Zhanna Andreasyan, who had already been impersonated in late October. The advice is the same: share no personal or official data, including passwords, codes or bank details, make no transfers, do not click on links or open attachments, then block the account and report it as fraud or spam.
Analysis
Such impersonations exploit the trust an official name inspires: a message that seems to come from the prime minister or a minister can push a civil servant, a journalist or a private individual to hand over a code or pay. Minister Zhanna Andreasyan had already reported a fake account on 28 October, a sign that the trick keeps coming back. When in doubt, the safest step is to check through an official channel, such as the institution’s website or verified pages.
Possible consequences
People contacted by these accounts are asked to block them and report them directly in Telegram or WhatsApp. The prime minister’s office has not said how many people have been approached.
