Poland is grappling with an unprecedented wave of sophisticated financial fraud, with criminals stealing millions of zlotys. Uniformed services report numerous arrests, including in Bielsko-Biała and Warsaw, where groups impersonating waterworks employees were dismantled. Simultaneously, the biggest players in the banking market, including PKO BP and ING Bank Śląski, have announced extensive technical outages for the upcoming weekend, which will temporarily prevent the use of cards and ATMs.

Massive ATM Blockades

PKO BP, ING, and Pekao have issued statements about technical outages over the weekend, limiting access to cards and cash.

Dismantling of Criminal Groups

Police arrested perpetrators of fraud in Warsaw and Bielsko-Biała, recovering part of the stolen funds.

New Phishing Methods

Fraudsters are exploiting the tax settlement period for e-PIT and fake notifications from Netflix and Revolut.

The final days of February 2026 have seen an escalation in the activities of criminal groups using social engineering to steal life savings. The National Police Headquarters and local units report losses amounting to millions of zlotys, correcting earlier, underestimated reports about the smaller scale of the phenomenon. Criminals employ a wide range of methods: from classic scams "on a policeman" or "on an accident," through false investment ads for shares in fuel companies, to modern phishing targeting users of Revolut, Netflix, and the e-Tax Office during e-PIT declaration settlements. In 2025, Polish police secured assets worth nearly 78 million zlotys from cybercriminals, illustrating the enormous scale of professionalization of the black market for financial services in the region. Effective actions by officers from Garwolin led to the formulation of an indictment against fraudsters offering fictitious assets, while in Warsaw, a gang robbing seniors under the pretext of water quality checks was dismantled. The situation is complicated by announced modernization works in the banking sector. Customers of PKO BP, ING Bank Śląski, and Bank Pekao S.A. must prepare for a temporary cutoff from payment systems and ATMs over the coming weekend. Institutions are appealing for earlier cash withdrawals or the use of alternative payment methods, such as the BLIK system, which in some situations remains available despite card blocks. Cybersecurity experts are drawing attention to new variants of SMS messages concerning alleged criminal fines or unpaid road tolls. Each such message contains a link to a fake payment panel, the use of which results in immediate takeover of the victim's bank account. In response to these threats, a broad preventive program aimed at educating the elderly was launched in Lower Silesia. Services remind that bank employees never ask for the installation of additional software or for providing authorization codes over the phone. „Pamiętajmy, że policjanci nigdy nie proszą o przekazanie pieniędzy ani nie informują telefonicznie o szczegółach prowadzonych działań operacyjnych.” (Let's remember that police officers never ask for money to be transferred nor do they inform by phone about the details of ongoing operational actions.) — Police Statement

Perspektywy mediów: Liberal media place greater emphasis on the need for digital education of citizens and the responsibility of banks for security systems. Conservative media more strongly emphasize the role of law enforcement agencies and police successes in physically dismantling criminal groups.