Equifax created an infographic to educate the public around the dangers of money mule issue
The ‘money mule’ threat remains to be an ongoing issue within the UK and members of the public are becoming gradually more inquisitive into this important subject matter.
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As a result, searches across the internet seem to be increasing and with more curiosity than ever before Equifax have devised this educational infographic after research shows that:
- Over the last 12 months, approximately 1,550 monthly average searches were made for the term, compared to 810 searches the previous year*
- Below (see table 1) is the UK regional breakdown for the average monthly searches around the term (based on the last twelve months)
- Londoners are searching around the term 'Money Mule' more than any other city in the UK
Table 1
| London | 22.8% |
| Birmingham | 3.0% |
| Leeds | 1.7% |
| Manchester | 1.6% |
| Glasgow | 1.5% |
| Other cities | 69.4% |
The Equifax infographic also comes after the release of the 2019 Fraudscape Cifas report* which saw
- The largest rise (35%) in money muling was among those aged between 41 and 60 years old
- In 2018, organisations reported over 40,000 cases of fraudulent abuse of bank accounts that bore the hallmarks of money mule activity
- Cases involving this activity generally were up by 26% in 2018 compared with 2017
As a result of the above findings, Equifax has aimed to educate audiences of all ages. Particularly, as the report found that being drawn into such criminality was no longer a problem limited to the younger demographics.
The infographic addresses questions around money mule issues such as:
- What money muling is
- How money muling works
- How to spot ads for money mules
The infographic will sit within the Equifax ‘Knowledge Centre’ which serves as an informational hub. The Knowledge Centre covers a variety of financial categories from sorting your debts to boosting your credit score and learning how to budget, everything you need to know to keep your finances in check. You can view the full infographic here:
Sources:
- https://www.cifas.org.uk/insight/reports-trends/fraudscape-2019
- ads.google | Keyword planner| Average monthly searches taken from the last 12 months August 2018 – July 2019 compared to August 2017 -July 2018
- ads.google| Keyword planner| Percentage breakdown across various cities in the UK |Average taken from the last 12 months
