One in ten young people has already been approached to act as a financial mule, Febelfin alerted Tuesday to this phenomenon which continues to grow. The financial sector federation is therefore launching a campaign aimed at them and their parents to make them aware of the dangers of online fraud.
A financial mule makes its bank account and/or its bank card and its codes available to criminals, who now recruit their prey at the school gate, in festive places or train stations, but also online.
However, notes Febelfin, young people today spend a lot of time on social networks, where they are confronted daily with advertisements or messages that promise them a quick way to earn large sums of money. “However, reacting without thinking can turn their lives upside down in seconds”warns the federation, which has launched a campaign to make parents and young people aware of this phenomenon.
Nearly 80% of young people have no idea what a mule is
The objective is indeed also to help parents to make their children aware that it is not possible to earn so much so quickly. In this context, a gigantic poster was displayed on the Place de la Bourse in Brussels and illustrates a dubious advertisement transposing those which young people are regularly confronted with online.
According to a survey of young people, too many of them are still reckless when it comes to online safety. Thus, a quarter of Belgians (25%) aged 16 to 30 have shared financial data without being really comfortable during the past year. This figure marks a strong increase of 8% compared to 2021, but also a big difference with adults (11%). In addition, 16% of young people surveyed would simply disclose their bank codes without hesitation if their “banque” demanded it, compared to 8% in 2021.
Another worrying finding, according to Febelfin: one in four young people (24%) in Belgium has never heard of phishing. A percentage, however, down from 30% in 2021. Finally, no less than 16% of young people surveyed would be ready to give their bank card or bank details to someone they do not know in exchange for money and do office of financial mule. This is 7% more than last year. Almost 80% of young people have no idea what a mule is and very few of them are aware of the risks that come with it.
