Record number of students targeted by scammers to become 'money mules'

More students than ever before have been recruited by fraudsters to launder money with the number of so-called “money mules” under the age of 21 more than tripling in three years.

Experts have warned that more cash-strapped students will be tempted by the apparent easy income as part-time jobs have dried up. However, laundering could land them in prison and leave their credit score in tatters.

Mules are recruited by criminals to help move money they have scammed out of innocent victims. Fraudsters trick victims into transferring cash to the mule’s bank account, who then moves it to the fraudster’s own account – taking a cut of the money as payment. This makes it harder for law enforcement to track down the original culprit.

The number of under-21s reported for being money mules more than tripled between 2016 and 2019 to 8,000, figures from Barclays bank show. Around a third of all money mules fall within this age group.

Criminals commonly use social media sites to snare young victims with fake job adverts. In some cases money mules do not realise they are working for fraudsters and are told they are simply moving deposits for a legitimate employer.

Despite being conned themselves, unsuspecting teenagers still face a sentence of up to 14 years in prison. Mules also face their accounts being closed down and could find it hard to open another or get credit in later life.

Barclays’ Ross Martin said: “The start of the new academic year is a prime time for fraudsters to target young people with the lure of easy money. It will be particularly tempting given the jobs market and the need for extra money if family finances are tight.”

He warned students to do their research and check that any job was legitimate.

Research by the bank found one in 20 students was likely to consider a scheme promising easy money even if it looked suspicious, due tio the financial pressures caused by the pandemic.

Last year Cifas, which runs the national fraud database, received 42,482 reports of potential money mules – some as young as 13.

More than half of the people whose accounts were flagged as suspicious were under the age of 30 and the number of potential money mules between the ages of 21 and 30 jumped by 8pc compared with the previous year.

Have you or someone you know been targeted by fraudsters trying to recruit you as a money mule? Share your story by emailing marianna.hunt@telegraph.co.uk. Information can be kept anonymous.