By Valeen Oseh-Ovarah
In today’s digitised world, cybercrime is no longer the preserve of the dark web or tech-savvy hackers.
Increasingly, it’s ordinary people, students, jobseekers, and everyday professionals who are unknowingly pulled into criminal networks. One of the most insidious tactics cybercriminals use is money muling, a crime that often hides in plain sight.
I remember receiving a message that looked like an exciting opportunity: fast money for minimal work, flexible hours, no prior experience needed. On the surface, it seemed harmless. But with a background in cybercrime investigation, I recognised the red flags instantly. This wasn’t a job offer, it was an invitation to become a money mule.
What worries me isn’t that I was targeted, cybercriminals are increasingly sophisticated. What worries me is how many others would have taken the bait.
What Is a Money Mule?
A money mule is someone who transfers or moves illegally acquired money on behalf of someone else, often across borders. In many cases, they don’t even know they’re part of a criminal operation. They believe they’ve landed a remote job, won a grant, or are helping a love interest. In reality, they’re laundering money, helping criminals “clean” stolen funds by routing them through legitimate financial accounts.
This isn’t some obscure corner of the cybercrime world. Europol estimates that tens of thousands of money mule transactions occur each year, many tied to phishing scams, business email compromises, and romance fraud.
Who’s Being Targeted?
Students, recent immigrants, remote workers, and people in financial distress are often top targets. Why? Because they’re more likely to be looking for part-time jobs or flexible income. These criminals don’t need to hack into a system when they can exploit economic vulnerability and digital naivety.
But the reality is, anyone can be targeted.
Red Flags to Watch For
Money mule recruiters are strategic and persuasive. They’ll often pose as legitimate employers, start-ups, or overseas companies. What makes money muling particularly dangerous is that the invitation often comes not only from a stranger, but from someone you know and trust. It could be a friend, a distant relative, or even a classmate who’s now involved in cybercrime whom you genuinely believe is sharing a good opportunity, unaware that they‘re now part of a criminal scheme. The most dangerous part is how “normal” it can seem at first. An Instagram DM promising flexible remote work, a cousin asking you to help move money for a new online business, or a recruiter offering to pay you for “receiving international payments” all carry a veneer of legitimacy, until it’s too late.
Often, there are subtle red flags. The so-called job doesn’t require experience or interviews. You’re asked to use your personal bank account to receive and forward money.
Communications happen only through private messaging apps, and you’re told to keep it confidential. Everything about it is rushed, vague, and slightly off, but for someone unfamiliar with cybercriminal tactics, it’s easy to fall for the bait. The conversation often starts innocently, “I saw your profile and think you’d be a great fit”, before escalating to instructions that could land you in serious legal trouble.
Watch out for these signs:
You’re asked to use your personal bank account to receive or transfer funds.
The job doesn’t require any real qualifications or experience.
Communication happens only via email or social media, and there’s no verifiable company website.
You’re told the job is “confidential” or instructed not to tell others about it.
You’re promised unusually high pay for very little work.
Why You Should Care
Being a money mule is not a minor infraction. Even if you didn’t know you were laundering money, ignorance is not always a defence. You could face frozen bank accounts, damaged credit scores, loss of student visas, expulsion from school, or even prosecution, and blacklisting from banks and financial systems.. Law enforcement in the UK, US, and other jurisdictions are ramping up efforts to identify and prosecute money mule activity. it doesn’t just endanger your finances; it endangers your future. More importantly, your account could become permanently flagged by financial institutions, making future employment or business opportunities incredibly difficult.
What You Can Do to Protect Yourself
We need to talk more openly about money muling. It should be part of every online safety and digital literacy curriculum. But until that becomes widespread, here’s what you can do:
Stay informed: Understand what money muling is and how it works. Share that knowledge with your friends, siblings, and classmates.
Pause before accepting ‘too good to be true’ offers: Always verify companies, individuals, and job offers. Use trusted platforms and do your due diligence.
Protect your financial identity: Never share your banking details or agree to receive funds from strangers online.
Report suspicious offers: Contact local authorities if you suspect you’ve been approached either online or in person
If you suspect that you’ve been approached or unknowingly participated in such a scheme, it’s important to act quickly. In the UK, you can report to Action Fraud, while in the United States, you can contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). In Nigeria, reach out to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) as it has increasingly recognised the role of financial mules in cybercrime and are building capacity to investigate and prosecute such crimes.
The Bigger Picture
Money muling is not just a personal risk, it’s a societal one. It fuels organised crime, enables cybercriminal syndicates, and facilitates the theft of billions of dollars globally each year. When you move money for a scammer, you’re enabling exploitation, sometimes of the most vulnerable people in society.
We must shift the narrative from shaming victims to empowering communities. The more we talk about it, the more we empower people to spot the warning signs and stay safe, because anyone can be a target, but with the right information, anyone can also be the first line of defence.
Money muling isn’t just about personal risk—it’s about enabling larger, organised crime. When you help scammers move money, you’re helping them exploit the vulnerable, finance terrorism, and defraud global institutions.
Oseh-Ovarah is a Cybercrime Investigator at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) who has a strong passion for Cybercrime Investigations, Online Safety and West African Intelligence.