Money mule numbers surge among over-40s

Lloyds Bank has reported a significant increase in money mule accounts among individuals aged over 40, with this demographic now representing 19% of such accounts, a growth of an astonishing 73% over the last year.

Younger individuals, particularly those aged 19 to 25, are also at risk, with 24% of money mule accounts belonging to this age group. Lloyds Bank has identified over 160,000 mule accounts since 2018, stopping over £114m from reaching fraudsters. The rise in money mules is attributed to various factors, including the cost-of-living crisis, which may tempt individuals into accepting offers of quick cash.

A money mule is someone who transfers or moves illegally acquired money on behalf of someone else. Scammers, often using social media to find their victims, recruit people to move money in this way, offering a cut of the cash to do so. They also intentionally target previously law-abiding people who opened, and are using, their bank accounts legitimately, to try and avoid detection.

The money being moved through these accounts has often been stolen in other scams. The criminals’ recruitment tactics vary – many frame the movement of cash as a legitimate job or an investment scheme, meaning victims are almost always unaware of the illegal activity they are undertaking. Some victims are drawn in by family members or friends, who have already been recruited and are also unaware they’re acting as money mules.

Lloyds Bank’s mule-hunting team, made up of specialist fraud investigators trained in behavioural analysis and pattern spotting, use state-of-the-art technology to scan the millions of legitimate payments made each day by its customers, to identify changes in the way accounts are used, to find money mule activity.

When a mule is identified, their account (or accounts) will be immediately frozen.  In total, the mule-hunting team have uncovered more than 160,000 mule accounts and stopped more than £114 million from getting into the hands of fraudsters – in real-time – since the team was set up in 2018.

The number of money mules found rose by 44% over the past year. Nearly a quarter of frozen money mule accounts were held by people living in Greater London (22%).  Other areas of the UK have seen large increases in the number of money mules identified.

Liz Ziegler, Fraud Prevention Director at Lloyds Bank, said “Acting as a money mule is a serious crime and can lead to life changing consequences. It’s vital that people are aware of these money laundering schemes and how easy it is to be lured in.

“Criminals are very good at making their illegal activities look like a real job opportunity and at tricking people into unknowingly recruiting family members and friends into becoming money mules.

“Fraudsters will keep the illusion of legitimacy up until the mule gets caught, then disappear, leaving the mule to deal with the fallout of unintentionally laundering money.

“While the realisation that you’ve mistakenly helped a fraudster clean their dirty money would be devastating for anyone, when it comes to mules, it won’t save them from the consequences, which can be extremely serious.

“Always remember – no legitimate company or person will ever ask you to use your bank account to receive and transfer their money. Do not do it under any circumstances, it’s not worth risking your own future by doing so.”

 

Region or nation	Top three areas for frozen money mule accounts (as a % of all)*
Greater London	22%
North West	14%
West Midlands	13%

 

Region or nation	Top three areas of growth in frozen money mule accounts * (%)
Wales	+104%
East of England	+75%
South East	+70%