Credit and Debit Cards

• Mules obtain cards linked to funnel accounts, enabling swift ATM withdrawals or point-of-sale transfers of unlawfully obtained funds.
• The everyday usage pattern of card transactions disguises the illicit nature of the underlying movement of proceeds.

• Criminals manipulate digital card statements by removing or editing high-risk entries, such as patterns of large or repetitive charges, to mask illicit spending.
• Software vulnerabilities or compromised card portals are exploited to alter transaction metadata, making suspicious payments appear as ordinary retail purchases.
• Institutions that rely on automated checks may fail to flag these doctored statements, mistakenly believing the transactions to be routine.

• Criminals use stolen or compromised card credentials to fund online gambling accounts, disguising illicit proceeds as routine deposit transactions.
• Due to insufficient identity checks on some gambling sites, these card-based deposits blend with legitimate gaming activity, evading clear detection.
• Withdrawals from the gambling platform as ‘winnings’ further obscure the origin, completing a layer of the laundering process.

Insiders overseeing card issuance or transaction monitoring can override alerts on anomalous activity, grant higher-than-normal spending limits, or expedite cards linked to fictitious or high-risk accounts without proper scrutiny. This effectively conceals suspicious card transactions that would otherwise be flagged by automated systems.

• Criminals apply for credit or debit cards using counterfeit or stolen identities, bypassing issuer screening.
• They exploit these cards to receive illicit funds via cash advances, purchases, or online transactions, masking connections to the real cardholder.
• Over time, they may cultivate synthetic credit profiles to access higher credit limits, broadening their capacity to circulate illicit proceeds undetected.

Fraudsters request re-embossing or new card issuance under a cleaned-up spelling; merchants and ATMs then accept transactions linked to the alias, severing ties to prior fraud scores on the original name.

• Criminals present alternative citizenship documents to open multiple credit or debit card accounts under different identities.
• Each card is tied to a separate legal "persona," fragmenting account ownership and bypassing consistent due diligence.
• This allows layering and swift movement of illicit funds, with transactions on one card seemingly unconnected to another, hindering a consolidated money trail.

• Fraudsters route illicit funds through bogus online sales by charging their own or stolen payment cards, generating artificial revenue.
• They also manipulate refund processes, crediting illicit proceeds back onto cards in ways that appear consistent with routine customer returns, obscuring the true source of the funds.

• Sham merchants process credit or debit card charges for goods and services that do not exist, turning illicit funds into purported commercial receipts.
• Card transactions blend seamlessly with ordinary business billing, obscuring the absence of genuine sales activity.

• Offenders perform numerous low-value card transactions—often online—to monitor for fraud or AML triggers.
• Once they identify which usage patterns remain unflagged, they scale up illicit transfers under those thresholds, evading detection systems.

• Criminals use numerous credit or debit cards, often opened under fake or stolen identities, to make seemingly legitimate contributions to crowdfunding drives.
• Repeated small donations across multiple cards blend into the normal transaction flow, making it harder for investigators to detect the illicit origin.
• Weak or fragmented KYC protocols on some crowdfunding platforms allow fraudsters to operate many card accounts unnoticed, reinforcing the layering process.

• Shell or front businesses accepting card payments label them as legitimate sales, effectively co-mingling funds from trafficking with standard commercial income.
• Debit cards tied to funnel accounts allow traffickers to withdraw or transfer proceeds across multiple locations, reducing transparent audit trails.
• Traffickers exploit repeated card transactions to integrate illegal profits into normal commerce, obscuring the actual source of funds tied to forced labor or exploitation.

• Fraudsters use stolen or compromised credit/debit card details to purchase large amounts of in-game currency under the guise of normal consumer spending.
• These suspicious funds blend seamlessly with legitimate gaming purchases, raising fewer red flags.
• Subsequent microtransactions or secondary trades within the gaming platform obscure the cardholder’s identity and card details, thwarting chargeback investigations.

• Using stolen or fabricated personal data, criminals apply for cards or seize control of legitimate card accounts, avoiding direct ties to their real identities.
• They can then perform fraudulent purchases and cash withdrawals without immediate detection, attributing the transactions to the impersonated individual.

• Unauthorized access to online banking or card management portals allows criminals to exploit legitimate card credentials.
• High-value purchases or cash advances appear routine under the established customer profile, delaying detection.
• This method effectively layers illicit proceeds into everyday transactions with minimal immediate scrutiny.

• Criminals overpay a credit card balance, creating a surplus that exceeds typical spending behavior.
• Subsequently, they request a refund check or direct deposit for the positive balance. Card issuers process these as standard balance refunds, making the funds appear legitimate.
• This overpayment-and-refund loop effectively launders illicit money through normal card refund processes.

• Criminals initiate chargebacks by falsely disputing transactions (e.g., claiming non-delivery or unauthorized use), thus reversing settled payments.
• They may use stolen or synthetic identities, or corporate/third-party cards, concealing the true origin of funds.
• By manipulating chargeback thresholds, they repeatedly launder funds without attracting immediate scrutiny from card networks or acquirers.

• Criminals use multiple card payments to place numerous small bets, avoiding reporting thresholds in the betting shop.
• The repeated, low-value card transactions appear routine, attracting less scrutiny from compliance teams.
• As winnings are paid out, the laundered funds appear indistinguishable from legitimate gambling proceeds.

• Criminals fund gambling balances using stolen or fraudulent cards.
• They execute carefully orchestrated losses, transferring illicitly obtained card funds to another conspirator’s account.
• The conspirator then withdraws these diverted funds as apparent gambling winnings, effectively laundering the original card transactions.

Mules are instructed to use existing cards or open new ones tied to their personal banking credentials. Criminals direct mules to receive illicit funds through these card-linked accounts and then perform cash withdrawals or make purchases. This keeps the criminal’s actual identity hidden while still enabling the rapid movement and layering of illicit proceeds.

• Through online marketplaces, criminals accept payments for counterfeit medicines via credit and debit cards, mislabeling the nature of these purchases.
• They also exploit chargebacks or refunds to obscure the actual purpose behind the transactions, further complicating the traceability of illicit funds.

• Perpetrators set up fake merchant websites or payment portals where victims are prompted to pay 'advance fees' using their cards.
• Once cleared, the funds are rapidly withdrawn or transferred to additional accounts, complicating transaction tracing and concealing the fraud’s source.

• Employees with access to corporate cards may charge personal or fabricated expenses, presenting them as legitimate business costs.
• Since card statements are often only briefly reviewed, offenders can blend criminal charges with authentic transactions, making illicit spending appear as valid expense items.