SBU spokesman Artem Dekhtyarenko shared the figures in an interview with the Financial Times.“Underage people cannot foresee the consequences of their actions,”  which makes them easy targets for Russian recruiters, he said.He noted that since spring 2024, approximately 25% of those detained for collaborating with Russia were under the age of 18.Dehtyarenko emphasized that Russia began its recruitment campaign in the spring of 2024. At first, Ukrainians were instructed to set fire to vehicles and electrical substations along railway lines. Later, the enemy shifted tactics, targeting military enlistment offices for arson.Earlier this year, “they switched to using Ukrainians as suicide bombers,” the SBU spokesman said.He also noted that Russian intelligence agencies sometimes disguise recruitment efforts as “quests” — a format popular among teenagers.“Ten years ago, some Ukrainians still sympathized with Russia’s military actions, but now there are almost no supporters of the so-called ‘Russian world’ left. That’s why Russian operatives have changed tactics and now try to lure people with money,” Dehtyarenko explained.“If a decade ago there were some Ukrainians sympathetic to Russia’s military actions, there are hardly any left who support ‘Russkiy mir’ — the Russian world,” the outlet quoted Dekhtiarenko. “So [Russia’s intelligence agencies] have changed their approach to offering people money.”Under the rules of the “quest,” teenagers received geolocation coordinates from the FSB, instructing them to reach specific locations, take photos and videos of certain objects, and provide brief descriptions of the area.By the end of May 2025, Ukrainian juvenile police reported that 50 teenagers had encountered bribery attempts through messaging apps.