This week is Get Safe Online week from those helpful chaps at, erm… GetSafeOnline.org. This is a UK government initiative that’s backed by big ISPs and technology companies. In short there’s everything you need to know here about how to keep you, your PC and your files and data safe when you’re on the internet.
It’s only recently that we’ve had one of the biggest internet security scares with Hotmail, Yahoo!, Gmail and other webmail systems being compromised by a massive phishing scam that resulted in tens of thousands of email account details being posted online.
Don’t think that your personal internet security isn’t something you should be taking seriously. In their press release there are some scary truths about something most of us have never heard of…
Internet users and job hunters are being urged to be on their guard against ‘too-good-to-be-true’ money earning opportunities during the economic downturn. Experts at GetSafeOnline.org are seeing increasingly sophisticated tactics being used by fraudsters to recruit unwitting ‘money mules’ in order to launder funds gained from illegal activity.
The warnings also come from people at the very top. For instance, the Deputy Director of e-Crime at SOCA, the Serious Organised Crime Agency, Sharon Lemon explains “Criminals are reliant on mule operations to receive and forward money taken from online banking fraud. Some money mules know exactly what they are doing. However, many end up unwittingly laundering profits for overseas criminals as a result of being taken in by fake recruitment sites. The consequence is that they end up liable for all the criminal funds they’ve received – which must be repaid, their bank accounts are frozen and they may be subject to criminal investigation.”
Tony Neate, managing director of GetSafeOnline.org, explains the scale of the problem: “At any given time, there are approximately 100 known mule recruitment sites targeting the UK, each of which may have around 50 active mules. Many will be moving considerable sums of money, but even based on a low estimate that each mule makes just three to four transactions, amounting to around £1,500, before being caught – that’s already £7.5 million in illegal funds.”
Despite the scale of these scams, according to 2009 Get Safe Online survey results released today, 90% of UK internet users have never heard the term ‘money mule’. The survey also highlights that we use the internet to search for job opportunities more than any other method, with over a third (39%) searching for jobs via legitimate, mainstream employment websites, used by many fraudsters to recruit potential mules.
Furthermore, 1 in 7 (14%) internet users claim to have been approached online with a job offer they’ve never applied for or enquired about via an unsolicited email from a person or company they are unfamiliar with – one of the several ‘warning signs’ to watch out for.
Neate adds: “Fraudsters go to great lengths to convince potential mules that they are applying for a genuine job – some even issue official-looking ‘employment contracts’ for their ‘employees’ to sign.
“Even though many mules are unwitting accomplices, they are the easiest part of the criminal chain to track down – and by allowing their bank accounts to be used to receive and transfer illegal funds, they are breaking the law, even if they do not realise it. With many people looking for ways to earn money during a recession, it’s critical that people learn to spot the warning signs to avoid becoming a victim,” Neate concludes.
Mule recruitment scams are one of the key threats being highlighted at the annual Get Safe Online Summit taking place in central London this morning, marking the start of this year’s Get Safe Online Awareness Week, which runs from 16th to 20th November.
Connected Internet have been asked to help promote Internet Safety this week, so I’ll be sharing with you a series of articles and hints and tips to keep yourself and your computer safe.
If you want to know more about Get Safe Online Week, you can read about it and watch a video here.
