Russian fake: Ukrainian ATMs seizing men's bank cards to make them visit military enlistment offices

Russian media, Telegram channels, and bots on the social media platform X are circulating a photo of an ATM, allegedly taken in a Ukrainian city. The image shows an error message on the screen reading: "Your card will be retained by the ATM. For details, contact your military enlistment office."

This is fake news. The ATM screen image was digitally altered using graphic editing software. The error code shown on the screen — ST200944 — is real, but it appears in an unrelated ATM error photo that has been circulating online since at least 2018.

Additionally, in the lower-left corner of the screen, the faint reflection of the person who took the photo can be seen. The man is wearing a striped shirt, visible in both the original and the manipulated images.

Russia is spreading such disinformation to undermine public trust in Ukrainian government institutions and the banking system, as well as to obstruct the country's mobilization efforts.

Earlier, Russian propaganda circulated fake advertisements for "18-24" and "60+" military contracts.

Andriy Olenin