InfoSecBulletin Cybersecurity for mankind
The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has warned about illegal payment gateways set up by transnational cyber criminals using mule bank accounts for money laundering.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) reported that recent nationwide raids by the Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh Police uncovered illegal digital payment gateways created by transnational criminals using rented bank accounts. This infrastructure enables money laundering related to various cybercrimes.
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The Hindu reported on October 24 that mule bank accounts are a major factor in online financial scams, which could drain 0.7% of the country’s GDP.
The Hindu reported that investigating agencies identify about 4,000 mule bank accounts daily, according to a presentation by I4C.
“As per the information received from State Police Agencies and analysis by I4C, current accounts and saving accounts are scouted through social media, majorly from Telegram and Facebook. These accounts belong to shell companies / enterprise or individuals.
It stated that illegal payment gateways are created using mule accounts, which criminal syndicates use to accept deposits on fraudulent sites like fake investment scams, offshore gambling websites, and fake stock trading platforms.
“Funds are immediately layered to another account as soon as the crime proceeds are received. Bulk Payout facility provided by banks are misused for the same,” it said.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) reported that payment gateways like PeacePay, RTX Pay, PoccoPay, and RPPay are involved in providing Money Laundering as a Service and are operated by foreign nationals.
MHA warns that I4C advises against selling or renting bank accounts, company registration certificates, or Udhyam Aadhaar certificates. Doing so can lead to legal issues, including arrest, if illegal funds are deposited. Banks may also monitor accounts for misuse related to illegal payment gateways.
Barrackpore cyber crime police, Siliguri Police and CID said, they caught 5 relating to such illegal activities and sized mobile phones, ATM cards and bank passbooks, which were used for the scam running into Rs 5.5 crore.
Policed said, said police, adding that the gang members offered them Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 a month to hire their bank accounts, which were used for transactions of millions of rupees.
