INSS 2022 contest: scammers try to deceive approved – 05/09/2023 – Market

Candidates who were approved in the 2022 INSS (National Social Security Institute) contest, which had more than 1 million subscribers, are receiving fake emails and messages from scammers with an alleged call to register.

The institute and Cebraspe (Brazilian Center for Research in Evaluation and Selection and Event Promotion), organizer of the selection process, released a statement this Tuesday (9) informing about the attempted coup.

The message sent by SMS and the email are signed by a false “Executive Management of Concluded Human Resources, Interviews and Hiring of the INSS” and the author uses the email: [email protected]. However, the INSS disclosed that the management does not exist and the email also does not belong to the institute or to Cebraspe. INSS emails end with @inss.gov.br, while Cebraspe emails end with @cebraspe.org.br.

In the message, scammers send an approval code, request an alleged registration on a platform and claim that the data needs to be forwarded by May 13th.

The INSS warned that all communication is done through its official channels (website or social networks) and that the call for approved candidates follows the notice published in the Official Gazette of May 4.

The entity also reported that it does not send emails or messages requesting personal information or asking to register via a link, as occurs in the false email sent by scammers. Cebraspe, on the other hand, disclosed that its communication is made through the candidate’s area on its website.

The use of links in messages is aimed at installing “malware”, which may include programs to capture passwords and personal data from users through cell phones or computers without the person noticing.

It is common to use emails (called “phishing”) as in the image of the coup released by the INSS, being able to customize the message using data from the person who wants to attack such as name, CPF and address.

The same text can also be used in WhatsApp, Telegram or SMS. The tactic is to provoke fear and present information in a sense of urgency. In the INSS example, the strategy was to say that the deadline would supposedly expire on May 13th.

The attempted coup is accompanied by a link (text with the underline in blue), which supposedly would take the person to the site of the body used as bait for the coup (in this case, the INSS), or else an attached program that needs to be installed.

“This link installs malware (malicious software that is designed to damage systems, steal data and even slow down the computer or cell phone), which can monitor the user’s browsing and start collecting data when the person enters a bank”, explains the CEO of the cybersecurity company AHT Security, Emilio Simoni.

From the moment the user is attacked, the user can be exposed to any type of situation such as slowness in the device, use of the machine to respond to the attacker’s commands, use of personal data to create false digital accounts to apply for loans or even invasion of the bank account and withdrawal of the entire amount.

Contest announced results on the 4th

The result of the contest used as bait by the scammers was released last Thursday. A thousand people were selected for social security technician vacancies across the country.

The selection process had more than one million subscribers and began in November 2022, with an objective test with 50 questions of basic knowledge and 70 of specific knowledge. The result of this step was released in December last year.

In January 2023, candidates underwent a biopsychosocial assessment and participated in a training course between March and April, which ended with a discursive test with two questions.

Those approved were announced in the DOU in a statement that showed the grades in the two questions of the discursive test, the score in the training course and the final classification with the sum of the points in the discursive test, in the training course and in the objective test.

The position of social security technician requires a high school education and a salary of up to R$ 5,905.79 for a 40-hour week.

This initial gross remuneration corresponds to the value of the basic salary of R$ 712.61, plus the GAE (Executive Activity Bonus), of R$ 1,140.18, the GDASS (Social Security Activity Performance Bonus), which may reach to BRL 3,595, in addition to food allowance of BRL 458.

The 1,000 vacancies were distributed among 97 INSS executive managements located across the country. Of the total, 702 positions were open to broad competition, 98 for people with disabilities and 200 for black candidates.

Contest had a series of failures

The holding of the INSS contest was marked by a sequence of failures, such as the delay in disclosing the test locations. The demand to register was so great that the organizer’s website went down and it was necessary to extend the registration period for one more day.

On Twitter, candidates also reported difficulties in registering due to problems recovering the password, registering again or submitting the exemption request to the selection organizer.

The tests for candidates running for the executive management of Guarulhos (Greater São Paulo) had to be canceled and redone, after confusion and delay in the arrival of the material. Exams have been rescheduled for December 2022.

This was the third time that Cebraspe organizes the INSS selection process.