UAE Judges Discuss Steps Taken by Authorities to Strengthen AML Controls

Richard Marley
July 04, 2022
3 minutes read
881

UAE’s senior judges outline the legal actions taken by authorities to strengthen anti-money laundering measures and due diligence controls in the fight against financial crimes

Senior judges in Abu Dhabi have spoken on the efforts of the UAE against financial crimes such as money laundering and terrorist financing ensuring legal mechanisms and due diligence of officials.

The chief justice of the Abu Dhabi criminal court, Mansour Al Marzouqi stated that reinforcing anti-money laundering mechanisms was an essential step as part of combatting controls against financial crimes. He spoke at a session held by the Abu Dhabi judicial department, the state news agency, Wam reported.

The online meeting comes after law enforcement in the Emirates took prompt action to tackle financial crime. Recently, UAE authorities have made several notable arrests, including the arrest of South African brothers Atul and Rajesh Gupta by the Dubai Police for allegedly embezzling billions from state-owned businesses.

In a $1.7 billion tax fraud case, police also detained hedge fund trader Sanjay Shah last month.

The meeting in Abu Dhabi targeted the strategies in place to counter money laundering and terrorist financing in parallel with the obligations of legal professionals and officers of the court.

The chief prosecutor of major financial matters prosecutions, Mohammad Al Hassani elaborated on the workings of how international cooperation was effective in detecting risks. It was endorsed by the coordination and prosecution of illicit activities associated with money laundering, the proliferation of arms and terrorist financing.

Mr Al Hassani was also the leading officer in the international cooperation section of the attorney general’s office. He emphasized the preventive measures taken in the financial sector, permitting powers to legal bodies for investigations, enforcing laws and transparency improvements.

He discussed the history, types of crimes, and the role played by the corporate sector as well as the obstacles and ways to stop money laundering.

The Abu Dhabi money laundering and tax evasion offences court was also praised by speakers. The judicial system in the emirate is being strengthened, to deal with such crimes, prosecute offenders, and bring them to justice, as per statements of Ridha Khemakhem, a judge at the Abu Dhabi Court of Appeal.

He also went over the UAE’s efforts, from creating institutional and legal frameworks to signing international treaties and agreements. The UAE has pledged to collaborate with foreign partners to root out criminals, punish them, and stop illegal financial networks.

The executive officer of AML/CFT financing elaborated on the confiscations made by the UAE worth Dh2.33 billion ($634 million) in the year 2021 in evacuating financial crimes.

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Along with the rise in virtual and remote work, the number of cases of recruitment fraud is increasing at an unprecedented pace, urging authorities to take decisive action against criminals. Especially the pandemic resulted in huge mass layoffs giving setbacks to many sectors, ultimately creating massive inflation across the globe.

Now that the pandemic’s effects are diminishing, 97 million new job roles are to be expected by the next year, which will expedite fraudulent practices in the talent acquisition sector. Companies should be on their guard and implement a joint action plan to counter rising recruitment scams to secure their onboarding process.

How do Online Recruiting Scams Work?

The scammers fraudulently use an established company’s name, logo and even the details of real employees working in human resource departments to post jobs on recruiting websites or other social media platforms.

Keeping their credentials almost identical to the official company’s details, they send emails to job-seekers or post fake jobs. As soon as interested candidates apply, they conduct interviews to get sensitive information about candidates through telephonic or on-site interviews.

Through fake interviews and telephonic/email conversations, criminals ask for sensitive personal information, particularly social security, ID number and bank account details that job seekers often provide, paving the way for identity fraud.

In some cases, the scammers even seek money from the candidates in the name of background checks or certifications which directly cost them financial losses. In the US alone, users lost $86 million due to fake job opportunities posted on the internet.

Spotting the Signs of Recruitment Fraud

Recruitment fraud is the most unfortunate part of modern job hunting, where criminals prey upon candidates’ eagerness to find work for their living by creating scam job opportunities.

Here are a few signs that can help job seekers spot fraudulent elements during the recruitment process:

Legitimate hiring managers and employers never ask applicants to make any financial transaction in their personal or company account. Always say No to any person who is asking you to send money for any recruitment purpose.

Although the majority of companies ask the candidates to provide their personal information, this step usually comes when the recruitment process is near to complete. Any person asking for sensitive information like bank account details, social security number, date of birth or identity details could be a scammer who must be turned down.

The majority of companies recruit their employees using their official email accounts; rather than contacting the person through common numbers or email addresses. Any job letter/offer from any such account could be a fake one.

Legitimate recruiters always follow a comprehensive plan to get all the relevant information about the candidate. Any person offering you a job without following a standard hiring process raises suspicions.
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1. Europol Arrested a Gang Involved in €20 Million Employment Fraud

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2. UK Government – Raising Awareness of Employment Scams

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How Shufti Pro can Help

With transforming technologies, the overall market is growing to produce more job opportunities for interested candidates. As per the surveys, this number is expected to grow in the coming years, increasing recruitment fraud risks.

Through talent acquisition scams, criminals not only defraud job seekers but also damage the reputation of established companies. So it is in their higher interest to find and implement a credible solution that efficiently mitigates the risks of stolen identity or credentials.

Shufti Pro’s identity verification services present an ideal option to counter this problem through its advanced identification features, including document authentication, facial recognition and address verification.

Want to learn more about identity verification services for eliminating recruitment fraud?

Connect with a KYC Expert

UAE Judges Discuss Steps Taken by Authorities to Strengthen AML Controls

How Much Have Australians Lost to Scams?

How do Online Recruiting Scams Work?

Spotting the Signs of Recruitment Fraud

High Profile Criminal Cases of Recruitment Fraud

1. Europol Arrested a Gang Involved in €20 Million Employment Fraud

2. Hampton Gang Member Convicted for Pandemic Employment Fraud

Talent Acquisition Fraud and the Role of Law Enforcement Authorities

1. FBI Issued Instructions to Avoid Employment Scam

2. UK Government – Raising Awareness of Employment Scams

How Shufti Pro can Help

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