Picture this: you’re on a train chatting with a nice lady and her young child — visitors to your home city. As the train approaches the station, she reaches for her wallet, pulls out a bank card, and her face falls. “Oh no! I accidentally snaped my card!” she exclaims. “What am I going to do now? I needed to withdraw cash…” Could I transfer you some money, so you can then withdraw it for me at an ATM?”
Most people would agree to help. She’s a young lady with a child in a new city after all, and she’s in a tight spot. What could go wrong? And she’s not asking for money — she’s sending it to you. It seems completely harmless. The money is quickly transferred to your account, you withdraw the cash from your account from an ATM, and the woman thanks you enthusiastically before disappearing into the crowds. But a couple of weeks later the police show up at your door…
You thought you were doing a good deed, but you’ve just become an unwitting participant in a money laundering scheme. People who help criminals move stolen money through their bank accounts are called “money mules”. Today we explain how you can accidentally become a money mule, and the serious consequences you could face.
How people become money mules
A money mule is anyone whose bank account is used to move or withdraw money as part of a scam. Mules are considered expendable in any fraudulent scheme, and anyone can become one — even someone who’s never heard the term before. There are many ways people get roped into these schemes, and here are just a few of them.
The “easy-money online job” scam. Job-search chats are often filled with tasty offers: “Looking for a few people, paying $50 an hour, easy work, all you need is internet access”. The “job” involves accepting transfers from certain people, and then making payments to others. Another variation involves withdrawing cash after funds are sent to you and giving it to a random courier. They might actually pay you for this “service”, but trust us, even $50 an hour isn’t worth the potential consequences, which we’ll get into later.
“I left my card at home. Do you mind helping me out?” The young-lady-in-a-tight-spot role is easy to recast in other narratives. Instead of a young lady, there could be a young man telling you a sob story about a card he’s left somewhere and needing help to pay for a smartphone, a TV, perfume, or some other expensive item. He’ll offer to transfer you funds so you can pay for the item with your own card. You may agree to help out — especially if you get cashback from using your card. But notice the difference: if this stranger messaged you online, you’d probably just tell them to get lost. However, when you’re standing next to them at the checkout counter, the likelihood of your “helping out” is much higher.
“We’ll pay you in cash under the table”. Even employees of small, shady companies can unknowingly become money mules. These companies don’t officially hire their workers, and pay only in cash under the table. Note that if the employer has obtained money illegally, all employees working without a contract may be considered money mules and could face serious legal consequences.
There are other schemes too, which primarily target teenagers. Youngsters are asked to open a bank account and pass the account details to strangers online who’ll pay them, say, $20 or $30 for the service. Opening a new bank account takes only a few seconds, and the promised sum is a real help for any hard-up student. Unfortunately, these young victims most likely have no idea who could use their accounts or how.
What happens if you become a money mule?
Nothing good. At a minimum, a money mule is considered an active participant in a criminal scheme — even if they’re unaware of their involvement. Fraudsters constantly steal large sums of digital money from both companies and ordinary people, employing hundreds of social engineering tactics. But they need a way to cash out. And that’s where schemes to create entire networks of unsuspecting money mules come in — and they’re the ones who’ll have the police knocking on their door.
Many countries have laws against money muling. Money mules get prosecuted regardless of whether they knew where the funds came from, or that they were pawns in a grand scheme. Proving the absence of criminal intent in court can be difficult, so, despite being unaware of the third party’s illicit intentions when transferring the money, they may be slapped with fines or other penalties.
Actual punishment varies by country: for example, in the United States, if criminal intent is proven, a money mule can face up to 20 years in prison. In Germany, to avoid punishment, it’s enough to turn yourself in to the police and report the scam you’ve become involved in. In Singapore, inadvertent money laundering can lead to fines of up to $150 000, or a prison sentence of up to three years if there were clear “red flags” pointing to a scam.
How to avoid becoming a money mule
Regardless of the penalties in your country for cashing out criminal money, you need to be extremely careful to avoid unwittingly becoming a money mule. Here’s a list of rules to help you avoid unwanted problems:
- Don’t trust everyone unquestioningly. If a stranger offers to send you any amount of money for you to withdraw for a small fee, refuse.
- Always work on-the-books, and with a formal contract. Don’t agree to off-the-books cash-in-hand, and always sign a contract for any job you do.
- Keep your bank details private. Don’t open bank accounts at the request of someone else, or sell details of your existing accounts or bank cards.
Most importantly, remember that nothing’s truly free. Learn how to spot scammers with the help of read our Telegram channel — subscribe to stay up to date on all the new trends in cybersecurity.
What else to read on fraudulent schemes:
Kaspersky official blog –
