THE FBI has issued a warning over emails that promise money but could get you in trouble with the law.
There could be one lurking in your inbox right now and the best thing to do is delete it.
The US agency has a whole webpage dedicated to money mule scams and warns against responding to the phishing emails.
It explains: “A money mule is someone who transfers or moves illegally acquired money on behalf of someone else.
“Criminals recruit money mules to help launder proceeds derived from online scams and frauds or crimes like human trafficking and drug trafficking.
“Money mules add layers of distance between crime victims and criminals, which makes it harder for law enforcement to accurately trace money trails.”
And, adds: “If you are moving money at the direction of another person, you may be serving as a money mule.”
Criminals are known to use phishing emails as just one of the techniques to lure in new money mules.
You may get a message promising free money as part of a scheme that fails to mention the criminal activity you’d become associated with.
The FBI says one danger sign is receiving “an unsolicited email or social media message that promises easy money for little or no effort.”
The message may promise an easy work-from-home opportunity that seems too good to be true because it definitely is.
Acting as a money mule is illegal and you can be punished.
You can be prosecuted even if you weren’t aware that you were committing a crime.
The FBI says: “Criminals often target students, those looking for work, or those on dating websites, but anyone can be approached to be a money mule.”
If you receive a suspicious message that seems like a money mule scam you should report it.
The FBI states: “If you have received solicitations of this type, do not respond to them and do not click on any links they contain.
“Inform your local police or the FBI.”
You can report activity like this to FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at ic3.gov.
