The various examples of financial crime to be aware of
Over at Winzum we are acutely aware of how dangerous the modern world can be when it comes to financial crime, and it’s why we are so determined to keep our lovely online competition community as safe as can possibly be. You really don’t want to be a victim of fraud or money scams these days, ain’t nobody got time for that!
Online competitions are our bread and butter of course, but in order to offer such a great service we’ve also had to read up on our online safety here at Winzum, and it’s something we’re always looking to spread the knowledge on. Financial crime, fraud, PayPal scams, phishing, ransomware… There’s a lot to be aware of these days. We gave you some online security basics here [some online security basics], and now we’ll set forth a few examples of financial crime to be aware of…
Money laundering
In most cases money laundering is an example of financial crime that probably won’t affect you individually, however it is still something to be aware of. Ever wondered how the organised criminal underworld actually makes it illegal money legitimate? It’s all down to money laundering.
Money laundering is done through a very complicated set of processes, usually involving a semi-legitimate business that is used to funnel money and effectively “clean” it. In fact, this is where money laundering can actually affect you as an individual, because if you pay for services at a money laundering front disguised as a legitimate business you could be indirectly financing organised crime.
Fraud
Out of all the financial crimes to be aware of, financial fraud is definitely the most important, as this is the one that can affect you the most on a personal level. The history of financial fraud is also quite interesting; you can check that out here [a history of financial fraud]. Financial fraud on an individual level is basically a way in which criminals trick innocent victims into paying money for fake services, or giving away their personal bank details.
This can be done through a variety of different methods, and that’s why it’s important to stay vigilant with your online safety, otherwise you will be opening the door to fraud. With PayPal, for example, you need to be aware of how nasty criminals can bend the service for their own gain. Luckily, we’ve an article on that [what is paypal fraud and how to avoid it]!
PPI scams and other scams
Money scams broadly fall into the category of financial fraud, but as these things are very common on an individual level we though it would be best to explore them separately. The most common way for scammers to try and scam people out of money is through phishing emails, which are basically fake emails sent from criminals that are made to look like they are from a legitimate company.
This can also happen over the phone mind you, with PPI scams being the most common example. If anybody ever tries to tell you that you are in line to receive PPI compensation money tell them politely that you are reporting the number to the police! The PPI deadline ran out back in 2019, so you know this is a straight up scam.
Blackmail and ransomware
A particularly unsettling example of financial crime revolves around blackmail, particularly with something called ransomware. Obviously, it’s always possible that you will be blackmailed via the traditional method, however in the 21st century it’s ransomware that you need to be aware of.
Ransomware is basically a sophisticated computer virus that can shut down your computer and lock all of your files. Criminals then blackmail you into paying a so-called “ransom”. Not nice!