The Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB) has offered “easy money” for committing acts of sabotage, the “hiring” announcements being promoted through direct ads on Telegram. The special services officers officially named the action “social experiment”.
The FSB Directorate in the Sverdlovsk region of Russia posted such ads on Telegram, according to Meduza. People were directed to an anonymous chatbot, where the recruitment continued and specific information about what the individuals were to do was provided. A few hours after publication, the announcement reached about 28,000 people, and nearly 180 accessed the conversation.
In the first stage, when the bot suggested that it was about earning money “in a less legal way”, 40 people left the chat. Then several offers for couriers were presented, and the wage was 50,000 – 60,000 rubles for half the norm. For sabotage, even 3 million rubles were promised.
After receiving these details, 56 people refused to continue the conversation. Only 10 made it to the end, ready to do anything for remuneration, confirmed FSB spokespersons.
The first announcements of this kind had appeared on social media back in the fall of 2025 and were distributed for a week. If participants refused to continue with the chatbot, an informative video was displayed warning of the consequences. Upon confirming their willingness to engage in illegal activities, the user received a final notification about the actual criminal liability for such actions.
Information about the 10 users who reached the final stage was “transmitted to law enforcement agencies for appropriate action”, but no one knows what happened to these people in the end.
