To evaluate public HIV awareness and to reveal HIV cases, 3500 subjects who were not obliged by law to pass examinations were interviewed and tested for HIV. This investigation was carried out by mobile groups outside of health care institutions among target population groups and employees of different enterprises in eight municipalities of Primosrkiy Region. Interviews associated with counselling and discussions were conducted before and after HIV tests. On a whole, the subjects showed acceptable awareness of HIV epidemiology and prevention issues; however, a high rate of wrong answers in questionnaires (18,7%) was noticed among people aged 30 to 49 years who in recent years were predominant among newly found HIV cases in Primorskiy Region. This finding should be taken into accounted in the designs of preventive and educational interventions. HIV detection rate among people who are not obliged by law to pass HIV testing has been found to amount to 0,08%. Twenty-nine percent of study subjects believe that preventive voluntary screening for HIV should be more available.