New After-School Job: Phishing Mule   1/6/2005 - 905 views,

No, it’s not a new act on Animal Planet.

In this context “mule” is slang for a low-level operative in a criminal organization whose job it is to act as a courier for contraband - usually money or drugs.

Authorities in Australia have discovered a phishing ring with ties to overseas organized crime. The local ring leaders, Australians who are all aged 19-21, had recruited high school students, some as young as 14 years old, to act as money couriers.

Once a victim’s bank details had been successfully phished, the ring would transfer monies from the victim’s account to the bank accounts of the high school students (the ‘mules’) who would then make withdrawals of up to $10,000 at a time, often from several bank branches, and cart the cash to their ‘bosses’. In exchange for their efforts, the students were paid $200 to $500 a pop.

Unfortunately, while crime doesn’t pay, it apparently beats working at McDonalds.