Brazen crooks: Money muling, forged documents are top SouthAfrican fraud risks says Manie van Schalkwyk, CEO of the SAFPS8672234
The South African fraud landscape has increased significantly over the past three years, with impersonation fraud, money muling and forged documentation being the most significant challenges the Southern African Fraud Prevention Services have had to deal with. This year alone, there has been a dramatic increase in money muling and forged documents.
One of the most common forms of money muling is when a victim is approached by someone claiming that they need to send money to a family member in another country and they need a bank account to perform this transaction. Wanting to help, many people willingly let these fraudsters use their bank accounts.
To put the money mule risk increase into perspective, in 2021, money-muling only comprised 22% of the fraud incidents reported to the SAFPS. This increased to 35% in 2022 and 43% in the first four months of 2023.The latest SAFPS Fraud Statistics indicate that impersonation fraud has increased by 356% over the past year. This can be attributed to data leaks and compromised personal data, which has shown a significant recent increase in South Africa.
“There has been a marked increase in the use of forged documentation, which has increased by 62% over the same period in 2022. Other forged documentation instances include fake driver’s licences, which can be used as a form of identification when applying for credit. This is a risk that the SAFPS is keeping an eye on in the future,” says Van Schalkwyk.
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