Teamviewer money mules

For some time now, Localbitcoins has suffered from the so called ‘Teamviewer scam’ where someone buys bitcoins on behalf of someone else, even handing over access to their computer and bank account, and then they claim the payment was fraudulent.

There are two ways the scammers get their victims to cooperate:

1) Sometimes they hack a Facebook account or buy it for money. Then they send messages to friends to ‘help with something’.

2) Other times they advertise their ‘job offer’ on social media, offering thousands of pounds for just 30 minutes work.

The first one takes a very gullible person breaking banking regulations on keeping their account safe, in the second case the victim is also an accomplice to fraud. They still claim to be victims, but it’s easy to show that they are not.

We have just been hit by the first of these Teamviewer scammers ourselves.

On the 29th of February, a woman created an account and verified it with her ID and selfie. Not much later she bought 2 x 2,000 GBP worth of bitcoins. The money is now held for a fraud investigation and she claims she was “hacked”.

To any future money mule wannabes, we would like to bring to your attention the following articles.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3382212/Facebook-fraud-gangs-turn-gullible-middle-class-teenagers-criminal-money-mules-persuading-launder-cash-accounts.html

“The youngsters are being promised the chance to make up to £12,000 in just half an hour via the social networking site.”

http://www.key103.co.uk/localnews/fraud-clampdown-on-manchesters-money-mules/

“These underhand tactics will not be tolerated. The illegal funds finance more serious and violent crime which can destroy communities.

“We urge people who are approached to consider their actions before taking part in such a deal. There’s no such thing as easy money, and a criminal record is the only thing you’ll gain from it.“

https://www.cityoflondon.police.uk/advice-and-support/fraud-and-economic-crime/fraudsquads/fraudsquad-News/Pages/Jail-for-money-mules-.aspx

Sentences:Kelvin OKUSANYA: 6 yearsOluwamuyiwa FASORANTI: 3 yearsSophia PUSEY-CARROLL: 21 monthsMonika SOLARZ: 18 monthsOmotola WELLINGTON: 2 years, suspended for 2 yearsMichelle DEOLA: 100 hour community orderMaureen AKO: 15 months, suspended for 2 years plus 200 hours unpaid workClement BANKOLE: 40 hour community orderKerone Clayton: 40 hour community order

We are in the process of adding Skype verification (which similar to card verification will be something you can do with sellers directly). It will be as simple as reading a statement on camera and sending it as a Skype message to either the site or the seller. This verification will only be needed for newly verified accounts trying to buy large amounts and will be at the seller’s discretion.