Phishing scams impersonate Finnish banks and insurers

Fraudulent messages impersonating Finnish banks and insurance companies are currently circulating, according to observations from the Kilpi application developed by Suomen Telemarkointiliitto ry. Scams have been identified using the names of Aktia, LähiTapiola, and S-Pankki.

In one specific instance involving Aktia, recipients receive messages claiming a mandatory security update is required to implement a new protocol. The messages use high-pressure tactics, such as threatening temporary restrictions on digital services if the user fails to log in and activate the new security level by a certain deadline. These messages often include detailed instructions and official company information to appear authentic.

A key giveaway for these scams is the use of subtle character substitutions. For example, in messages impersonating Aktia, the Latin letter ‘a’ is replaced with a visually identical Cyrillic ‘а’. While they appear the same to the human eye, computers process them as different characters. Experts advise that the safest course of action is to avoid clicking any links in such messages and instead navigate to the official banking service independently.