Mule networks remain difficult threat in loan frauds, scams: Report

Mule networks continue to drive frauds and scams, with operations turning transnational and causing heavy losses for Indian users, according to a Bureau report

Mule networks remain a major driver of loan frauds and e-commerce scams, with operations increasingly turning transnational and concentrated in South and Southeast Asian regions such as Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos, even as domestic scam activity continues to rise, according to a report.

 

Nearly one in every two Indian enterprises identified mule networks as a structurally difficult threat, followed by social engineering at 33 per cent, a report by technology service platform Bureau shows.

 

The report added that fraud operations were not isolated incidents but coordinated rings operating across states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and adjoining areas. These areas combined scams such as social engineering, mule accounts, and payments fraud.

 

 

Scams linked to cross-border sites in Southeast Asia cost Indian users Rs 8,500 crore in the first half of 2025 (H1 2025), involving phishing, job offers, and digital arrest schemes.

 

The report added that synthetic identities, which combine real and fake credentials, were used to bypass verification.

 

Blended ones combined legitimate signals with fraud and were harder to detect. To bring some perspective, more than 75,000 synthetic accounts contributed to Rs 2,115 crore in losses in 2025. 

Industry	Dominant fraud vectors	Loss (in Rs crore)	Mule/Laundering pathways
Banking, NBFCs	Account takeover,  new account fraud,  social engineering,  ATM/card skimming	Banks: 12,250  NBFCs: 1,890	Multi-state  accounts, layered  fund transfers

  Fintech, payments UPI-linked fraud,  wallet hacking,  social engineering UPI: 805  Wallets: 1,420

Prepaid wallets,  multiple UPI accounts,  overseas transfers

  eCommerce  and  Marketplaces Account takeover,  promo abuse, fake  returns, gift card  scams 3150

Refunds, gift cards  converted via  intermediaries/P2P  wallets

  Digital  Lending Synthetic borrower  identities, fake  documentation,  loan stacking 2,115

Third-party wallets,  cash-out agents

  Source: Bureau