Criminals never seize to utilize any open window to perpetrate their illicit act. Some scammers are still taking advantage of the pandemic COVID-19 to feed off unsuspecting members of the society. Those seeking a work-from-home job may be the target for a money-laundering scheme. Following the outbreak of Coronavirus, there have been the birth of many fraudulent websites where they pose as a legitimate charity foundation hiring online customer service representatives that are required to do some groundwork in an initial stage. A clear example is Vasty Health Care Foundation whose domain has remained inactive, the foundation hired people to assist out with donations and investigate local pharmacies allegedly violating pricing policies for medical products. After the detective work is done, the recruits are told to file a report and keep any receipts to charge travel expenses. After completing these tasks, the innocent recruits will be asked to help wire a donation from a benevolent individual who wants to support the fight against the Coronavirus. After the unsuspecting recruits receive transfers in their various accounts, they would be told to keep some portion for themselves and withdraw the remaining and then deposit it in cash in a Bitcoin ATM by scanning a QR code received on their emails from the perps.
After the transaction, the money is permanently transferred to a Bitcoin wallet managed by the criminals. To discover any money mule hiring scam, individuals are to be wary of employers asking them to transfer funds to another financial account especially in cryptocurrency, they are also to be wary of suspicious websites that have only recently been set up and unrealistic compensation and unconventional letter of employment. As ignorance is no excuse in the face of the law, anyone who knowingly or unknowingly falls victim of money mule hiring scam may face dire consequence ranging from not being able to access his bank, being prosecuted for participating in the money laundering scheme, repaying the losses of other victims or becoming a victim of identity theft.
