forget the “fake blind” unmasked while driving or the employee in a wheelchair who walks without problems outside the office. Those stories have filled the news about INPS scams for years.
Today the phenomenon has changed its skin: more sophisticated, less visible, especially digital. Panorama is able to reconstruct the emergence of a new supply chain, that of “false digital invalids”.
No longer isolated episodes, but a system that is born and nourished online. Telegram channels, YouTube videos, Instagram reels, forums: a network that teaches technical language, percentage thresholds, table pathologies, procedures, aggravations and appeals. A truly widespread manual that risks transforming a right into a strategy.
The leap in quality is not just theoretical. A recent investigation in Sicily has revealed an “all inclusive” system for unduly obtaining welfare benefits. According to the investigators, a complete package was offered: false medical certifications, sometimes backdated and issued without an examination, online preparation to face the commissions, presence at collegiate visits and legal assistance in case of rejection. A certification market costing thousands of euros per application, managed by intermediaries capable of connecting applicants and compliant specialists. But it is the digital dimension that represents the real turning point. An ever-widening gray area, in which it becomes difficult to distinguish between organized fraud and opportunistic “optimization”.
«We could define it as a digitalisation of the distortions linked to civil disability», explains Cinzia Laurenza, one of the most followed and expert lawyers on the social security front, known on the Web with the “Disability Lawyer” page. «The point is that there is a clear line between the right to be informed and the attempt to artificially guide a medico-legal evaluation. When you cross that line, you risk transforming a right into a strategy, with significant consequences.”
This is exactly what another lawyer who has become a “star” on social media, Carmine Buonuomo, also believes: «These are not always criminally relevant conducts, as there are forums, social groups and channels where information is simply shared on how to maximize the chances of obtaining higher percentages. In some cases, however, it openly leads to abuse: suggestions on how to emphasize symptoms, on how to behave in front of commissions or even what type of clothing to wear or orthopedic aid to bring with you.”
The official INPS data helps to understand the context and to understand how this distortion is probably already underway: the benefits for civilian disabled people in force rose from 3,233,711 in 2020 to 3,414,007 in 2024; in the same period of time the average monthly gross amount grew from 431.53 euros to 491.52 euros. The result is that if in 2020 the INPS spent a total of 6.5 million on disability checks, today it reaches 7.4 million.
An increase that does not in itself demonstrate irregularities, but raises a question: how much of this growth is linked to a distorted, or at least excessive, use of the system? «The problem is not the means», explains Dr. Laurenza, «but the use made of it: when shortcuts or results are promised, unrealistic expectations are fueled and there is a risk of pushing towards incorrect behaviour».
We then joined a Telegram group to understand if this risk is really that real. Access is reserved: you get to the group via link, after which everyone writes using nicknames. Inside, the scene is that of a parallel market. The administrators write almost advertising messages: «Complete package – visit + commission + appeal assistance». And again: «Percentages guaranteed above 74%, only selected cases». New arrivals, from what we understand, are invited to write privately for a “preliminary evaluation”, a sort of screening that serves to understand “how workable the practice is”.
In some cases real operational suggestions appear: how to describe the symptoms, which tests to attach, what to say and what to avoid during the interview.
Pretending to be interested, then, we try to contact some of the registered users. There are those who simply asked if it really is necessary to show up for the visit, those who explain to us which pathologies they say work best (“Go for stress and depression, there you can even receive 74% disability”), those who say they have already obtained recognition on the first attempt. And then of course there are the costs. The figures circulate implicitly, but they range from 2 thousand euros to 5 thousand euros, depending on the degree of “success”. The language is striking: never fully explicit, always built on implications. The words “false” or “illicit” almost never appear. There is talk of “adjusting”, “sorting out”, “strengthening the documentation”.
A lexicon that seems designed to shield, but which suggests a structured system and which moves on the very thin thread that divides legality and illegality. The same pattern is found on social media.
Videos and tutorials on Youtube and TikTok explain how to “deal with the visit”, “what to say, what to avoid and little tricks that can really make the difference”. Some content is informative, others push towards a simplified narrative, where everything seems replicable. And it is there that “opportunistic or distorted behavior” is fueled, explains Buonuomo. «Those who provide consultancy should adhere to clear ethical criteria, avoiding ambiguous messages. At the same time, it is essential that the public knows how to distinguish between reliable information and visibility-oriented content.”
Added to this is a further pitfall: the proliferation of fake profiles that use the names of real professionals to attract users. «It is a phenomenon that exposes citizens to further risks, especially in such a delicate area», warns Laurenza.
This is what happens, in fact, every day to her: a continuous multiplication of fake pages and profiles that exploit the lawyer’s notoriety to promote financial investments, real scams, and fundraisers. Of every kind. Especially on TikTok, where control appears weaker, requests for money linked to the most disparate causes multiply daily, often built around alleged disabilities or serious illnesses.
Among the most disturbing cases is that of a campaign – still active – asking for help for a child suffering from a very serious pathology: Daniele Valente. A completely invented story. Over time, through an incessant sequence of profiles (DanieleValente890, HelpDani, HelpDaniele), the same network continues to spread fraudulent fundraising, managing to collect thousands of euros thanks to the use of images and videos stolen from other actually existing and sick children, including the Italian Cecilia Finocchiaro.
The overall result, therefore, is a short circuit: more access to information, but also more disinformation; more tools, but also more shortcuts.
For experts, the answer must be twofold. «It is necessary to strengthen targeted controls in suspicious cases, while avoiding generalizations that risk penalizing those who have a legitimate right. On the other hand, it is essential to improve the quality of information: a clearer and more accessible system reduces the space for improvised intermediaries or individuals who operate incorrectly”, explains Laurenza. And above all, intervene on digital: «In this direction there is also the obligation for relevant influencers, like me, who exceed 500 thousand followers or one million average monthly views on at least one platform, to register in a specific list, precisely to guarantee more transparent, correct and verifiable social communication», underlines Buonuomo. In short, the game today is played online. And it is there that the boundary between right and abuse risks becoming increasingly thin.
