Money muling

Certain bogus firms hire the mules and they ask them to withdraw and transfer funds for some basic commission. The fraudulent organisations post adverts seeking young recruits, offering huge earning opportunities to unsuspecting unemployed people.  

Most such deposits are made through unknown sources sent overseas to be used in criminal activities. 

The person who joins the firm may not know about the source of illegally obtained money, but since they have been part of the criminal offence, they can be prosecuted for accepting it into their accounts. 

How To Spot Risks?

• If you have been offered a huge salary for jobs with little work.

• If the employer is based overseas and you do not know much about their business. 

• In the UK, migrants, unemployed and foreigners are targeted by bogus firms besides students to draw them towards easy earning deals. They pick such individuals on social media, and many young men and women join them, approving them to transfer funds. 

• Such accounts are often invisible and difficult to spot. Furthermore, banks have been gathering common risk factors, like many attempted transactions from multiple or overseas locations in one day or with a very high credit limit, to spot such transactions. As a result, they have blocked many suspicious accounts. 

How To Protect Yourself?

• No legitimate firm ever asks to use the employee's bank account holding funds. If the job description or role involves transferring such wealth from unknown sources, you should refuse it.

• If the offers come from overseas and you cannot find the legitimate work, it's an alert. If you suspect a fraud, report it to the regulatory authorities.