In 2023, it is estimated that $3.1 trillion in illicit funds moved through the global financial system. Financial crimes can take many forms.

Money laundering accounted for trillions of dollars supporting a wide range of crimes, including $346.7 billion in human trafficking, $782.9 billion in drug trafficking activity, and $11.5 billion in terrorist financing.

In 2023, fraud scams and bank fraud schemes reached $485.6 billion in total losses.

In this episode of Privacy Files, we welcome back Tom Chavez, a private investigator and CEO at Dark Horse Intelligence in California.

Tom is a veteran in investigating financial crimes. We talk about a variety of financial crimes and what to look out for to better protect yourself from becoming a victim.

Surprisingly, check fraud is still alive an well. In addition, Tom touches on mailbox fraud for stealing identities.

We also discuss cryptocurrency fraud, one of Tom’s passions, and review the problems with P2P payment apps.

Tom addresses what he calls “microthefts”, or small amounts of money routinely deducted from bank accounts. He even recounts a personal story where a bad actor unsuccessfully attempted to access and withdraw money from his bank account.

One of our most fascinating topics is “fraud-as-a-service.” There is an entire industry on the Dark Web for fake IDs, stolen credit cards and accounts, and laundering money.

We also dive into decentralized identity and reusable credentials for preventing financial fraud in the banking industry.

Rich even tells a personal story about how someone recently hacked into his frequent flyer account and stole miles for a plane ticket.

And of course, as always, we offer some advice for how you can better protect your personal data.

To learn more about Tom Chavez:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-chavez-dark-horse-intelligence/

To learn more about Dark Horse Intelligence:
https://darkhorseintel.com/

Links Referenced:
https://www.nasdaq.com/global-financial-crime-report