Ukraine’s illicit call center industry generates up to $1 billion per month and employs approximately 60,000 people, with high-ranking Cyberpolice and State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) officials allegedly involved in scheme protection and systematic coverage.
This is according to a report by the Geneva-based Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC) and filings from several criminal proceedings conducted by the State Bureau of Investigation.
Scale of the Threat: More Lucrative Than Drug Trafficking
According to experts at GI-TOC, an organization dedicated to analyzing transnational crime, illegal «offices» have evolved into one of the country’s most profitable criminal sectors, surpassing drug trafficking in revenue. The scale of employment is equally striking: 60,000 workers account for nearly two-thirds of Ukraine’s entire official banking sector workforce.
Contrary to common misconceptions, Russian citizens represent only 10–15% of the victims. The vast majority targeted by the scammers are residents of Ukraine and European Union countries.
From the GI-TOC Report:
“Fraudulent call centers have become one of the most profitable and rapidly evolving forms of organized crime, adapting swiftly to changing external conditions.”
High-Level Protection and Asset Hiding Schemes
Sources in law enforcement and investigative journalists link the longevity of these schemes to high-level institutional protection. Specifically, investigators highlight leadership within the Cyberpolice Department, headed by Yuriy Vykhodets.
According to investigative reports, the official’s family assets are masked through a complex system of nominees and a sham divorce:
-
Luxury Real Estate: A coastal estate measuring nearly 300 sq. m in the elite suburb of Sovinyon near Odesa was transferred from his ex-wife, Natalia, to her mother shortly before their divorce, evading reporting requirements by the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).
-
Commercial Properties: The physical building and land underlying a high-end beauty salon in Sovinyon are registered under the official’s father-in-law, who lacks official income to justify such a purchase, while his ex-wife manages operations.
-
Vehicle Fleet: Premium vehicles—including a 2022 BMW 7 Series valued at approximately $100,000 used by the Cyberpolice chief—remain registered under his ex-wife and her business entities.
Monthly «Subscriptions» and Fake Raids: How the Scheme Operates
Case files from the State Bureau of Investigation reveal explicit mechanisms used by corrupt officials to collaborate with call center operators:
-
Monthly Protection Fees («Protection Rake»): Officers request between $5,000 and $20,000 per month from major offices in exchange for raid warnings and leaked victim databases. In one notable case, a senior Cyberpolice inspector demanded $16,000 monthly to shield a 500-seat call center.
-
Staged Raids and Sabotaging Competitors: Officers conduct raids on unauthorized competing centers, seizing equipment without logging records in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations (ERDR). The gear is later returned to owners for ransoms ranging between $5,000 and $10,000.
-
IT Infrastructure and Anonymization: According to investigators, individual officers used their technical expertise for crypto-based kickbacks, setting up VPN servers and IP telephony to route traffic away from monitoring by other security agencies.
Experts conclude that as long as shadow profits enable operators to systematically corrupt law enforcement agencies, dismantling this criminal enclave will remain an uphill battle.