Young people 'exploited to launder money'

THOUSANDS of young people are being exploited by criminals to launder money, the Children's Society is warning.

- VICKY SHAW

Figures obtained by the charity from UK fraud prevention service Cifas indicate that 6,434 under-21s were identified last year where there were grounds to believe that frauds or financial crimes had been attempted through them.

The charity said its own research indicates some children aged 15 to 17 have experienced severe violence as a direct result of financial exploitation.

Victims are manipulated through coercive tactics such as threats against their families, financially motivated sexual extortion or "sextortion" and fears of criminal prosecution, the charity said.

It warned that exploitation often starts with seemingly minor requests such as sharing bank details or responding to "quick cash" job adverts.

The society said young people report regularly seeing scam posts across social media platforms.