e-tools, e-routes: terror finds new ways of financing; Hizbul Mujahideen raised over Rs 800 million through e-channels
Hawala trading, private donations, use of charity organisations and
fund transfer through banks are no more in vogue when it comes to terror
financing.
An inter-governmental body assigned to combat money laundering and terrorist financing has warned countries of new fundraising modus operandi by terrorist groups through social media, new payment products and services and also through exploitation of natural resources.
In its latest report, 'Emerging Terrorist Financing Risks', the 36-member Financial Action Task Force (FATF) says crowd-funding through e-wallets, virtual currency bitcoin, prepaid cards for playing on internet etc., online payment systems such as PayPal, CashU and social media networks are fast becoming potential fundraising tool of terror financing.
These largescale and well-organised hi-tech fundraising methods help terrorist organisations widen their outreach to several thousands of sponsors and raise significant amounts in short notice. The modus operandi is peer-to-peer horizontal communication in the form of chat goups and forums on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and sometimes take to mobile applications such as WhatsApp and Viber or more secure networks like Surespot and VoIP, says the report.
Listing several cases, and indicating that the donors from crowd-funding and social networks had no idea of end use of the collected funds, the FATF report states that probe is on in many cases of false crowd funding campaigns, where in ultra groups resort to such methods as a ploy to obtain money.
The US Secret Service had observed that terrorists are looking for and finding virtual currencies that offer: anonymity for both users and transactions, the ability to move illicit proceeds from one country to another quickly, low volatility, which results in lower exchange risk, widespread adoption in the criminal underground, and reliability.
As late on August 28 this year, Ali Shukri Amin was charged for providing instructions to new terror recruits on how to use bitcoin, a virtual currency, to mask the provision of funds to terror outfit ISIS, as well as facilitation to ISIS supporters seeking to travel to Syria and Iraq.
"Amin had tweeted a link to an article he had written entitled 'Bitcoin wa' Sadaqat al-Jihad' (Bitcoin and the charity of jihad). The article discussed how to use bitcoins and how jihadists could utilise this currency to fund their efforts. Amin suggested using Dark Wallet, a new bitcoin wallet, which keeps the user of bitcoins anonymous," FATF report stated.
Some terror financing cases involving low-value transactions via online payment systems such as PayPal have also been linked to a number of terror suspects. Besides, CashU, a prepaid online and mobile payment method is also under the scanner of law enforcement agencies terrorist financing.
In a case of explicit calls for funds on social networks with German Law Enforcement Agencies, in a Facebook group on recipes for women, one of the users placed a call for funds in 2013. A terror module in Syria was mentioned (name withheld) who urgently needed "equipment, food and pharmaceuticals". There was time to collect funds until 'Thursday', in order to 'dispatch' the requested material by 'Friday'. The user also provided the details of an account held with a German bank where the funds were to be sent. It is unknown if the author of the Facebook call for funds is also the person responsible for this initiative. The owner of the account is a convert, who is suspected of coordinating this advertising campaign.
In another case of PayPal accounts used for fundraising, a charity set up in 2010, whose chairman specialised in e-marketing, offered on its website several options to make donations by credit card, PayPal, cash transfers, checks. Over a year and a half, bank accounts of this charity received numerous donations by checks and wire transfers below EUR 500. Of the EUR 2 million collected, EUR 6,00,000 came from a few PayPal transactions from another country. Personal PayPal accounts were also used to collects funds, then to be withdrawn by cash, or transferred to other accounts.
Terror trail
Indian authorities investigated a large criminal conspiracy involving nine, including a US citizen and a Canadian citizen who operated in collusion with Lashkar-E-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-Ul Jihadi Islami (HUJI). On multiple occasions and over a number of years, the defendants received legitimate cash (e.g. Euro, US dollars) as well as counterfeit Indian/Pakistan currency from sympathisers of the terror group. One one occasion the defendant received $25,000 to establish an immigration office in Mumbai, which was in fact a cover for his travel and maintenance while carrying out the reconnaissance of potential targets for attacks by LeT.
OUT
Hawala trading
Private donations
Charity groups
Transfer via banks
IN
Bitcoin
e-wallets
PayPal
CashU
Source: http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-e-tools-and-e-routes-terror-finds-new-ways-of-financing-2138204
An inter-governmental body assigned to combat money laundering and terrorist financing has warned countries of new fundraising modus operandi by terrorist groups through social media, new payment products and services and also through exploitation of natural resources.
In its latest report, 'Emerging Terrorist Financing Risks', the 36-member Financial Action Task Force (FATF) says crowd-funding through e-wallets, virtual currency bitcoin, prepaid cards for playing on internet etc., online payment systems such as PayPal, CashU and social media networks are fast becoming potential fundraising tool of terror financing.
These largescale and well-organised hi-tech fundraising methods help terrorist organisations widen their outreach to several thousands of sponsors and raise significant amounts in short notice. The modus operandi is peer-to-peer horizontal communication in the form of chat goups and forums on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and sometimes take to mobile applications such as WhatsApp and Viber or more secure networks like Surespot and VoIP, says the report.
Listing several cases, and indicating that the donors from crowd-funding and social networks had no idea of end use of the collected funds, the FATF report states that probe is on in many cases of false crowd funding campaigns, where in ultra groups resort to such methods as a ploy to obtain money.
The US Secret Service had observed that terrorists are looking for and finding virtual currencies that offer: anonymity for both users and transactions, the ability to move illicit proceeds from one country to another quickly, low volatility, which results in lower exchange risk, widespread adoption in the criminal underground, and reliability.
As late on August 28 this year, Ali Shukri Amin was charged for providing instructions to new terror recruits on how to use bitcoin, a virtual currency, to mask the provision of funds to terror outfit ISIS, as well as facilitation to ISIS supporters seeking to travel to Syria and Iraq.
"Amin had tweeted a link to an article he had written entitled 'Bitcoin wa' Sadaqat al-Jihad' (Bitcoin and the charity of jihad). The article discussed how to use bitcoins and how jihadists could utilise this currency to fund their efforts. Amin suggested using Dark Wallet, a new bitcoin wallet, which keeps the user of bitcoins anonymous," FATF report stated.
Some terror financing cases involving low-value transactions via online payment systems such as PayPal have also been linked to a number of terror suspects. Besides, CashU, a prepaid online and mobile payment method is also under the scanner of law enforcement agencies terrorist financing.
In a case of explicit calls for funds on social networks with German Law Enforcement Agencies, in a Facebook group on recipes for women, one of the users placed a call for funds in 2013. A terror module in Syria was mentioned (name withheld) who urgently needed "equipment, food and pharmaceuticals". There was time to collect funds until 'Thursday', in order to 'dispatch' the requested material by 'Friday'. The user also provided the details of an account held with a German bank where the funds were to be sent. It is unknown if the author of the Facebook call for funds is also the person responsible for this initiative. The owner of the account is a convert, who is suspected of coordinating this advertising campaign.
In another case of PayPal accounts used for fundraising, a charity set up in 2010, whose chairman specialised in e-marketing, offered on its website several options to make donations by credit card, PayPal, cash transfers, checks. Over a year and a half, bank accounts of this charity received numerous donations by checks and wire transfers below EUR 500. Of the EUR 2 million collected, EUR 6,00,000 came from a few PayPal transactions from another country. Personal PayPal accounts were also used to collects funds, then to be withdrawn by cash, or transferred to other accounts.
Terror trail
Indian authorities investigated a large criminal conspiracy involving nine, including a US citizen and a Canadian citizen who operated in collusion with Lashkar-E-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-Ul Jihadi Islami (HUJI). On multiple occasions and over a number of years, the defendants received legitimate cash (e.g. Euro, US dollars) as well as counterfeit Indian/Pakistan currency from sympathisers of the terror group. One one occasion the defendant received $25,000 to establish an immigration office in Mumbai, which was in fact a cover for his travel and maintenance while carrying out the reconnaissance of potential targets for attacks by LeT.
OUT
Hawala trading
Private donations
Charity groups
Transfer via banks
IN
Bitcoin
e-wallets
PayPal
CashU
Source: http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-e-tools-and-e-routes-terror-finds-new-ways-of-financing-2138204
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