The National Police has uncovered more than 200 cases of fake volunteering
Ivan Vyhovsky, Head of the National Police of Ukraine, reported on the widespread prevalence of pseudo-volunteer schemes since the start of the full-scale invasion.
The head of the National Police of Ukraine made this statement in a comment to Ukrinform.
Criminals are exploiting citizens’ desire to help the army on a massive scale by creating fake fundraising campaigns and embezzling donations.
According to the head of the agency, law enforcement has already documented over 200 cases of such fraud.
Statistics show that the vast majority of criminal schemes—about 90%—are disguised as efforts to support Ukrainian defenders.
“The vast majority of fraud cases in this area are linked to fundraising supposedly for the military. Of the more than 200 documented incidents during the full-scale invasion, 90% involve fundraising to support the activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Ivan Vyhovsky emphasized in a comment to the media.
Scammers use sophisticated methods to manipulate the trust of Ukrainians, including creating fake social media pages.
To give the fundraisers an air of legitimacy, they use photos of real military personnel or well-known volunteers without permission.
Most often, funds are raised for critically important items: vehicles, drones, thermal imagers, ammunition, and generators.
Fake requests for the repair of damaged military equipment or the purchase of medical supplies for frontline hospitals are also common.
Another area of activity for scammers is exploiting humanitarian disasters.
Police have documented cases of fundraising supposedly for the evacuation of people from the combat zone, aid for victims of the explosion at the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, or even charitable donations in memory of fallen heroes.
As a reminder, scammers were detained in the Odesa region for defrauding military personnel in car sales.
Also, in 2025, 80% of online fraud cases involved manipulation of bank customers.
