December is the month of family, friends… and money mule accounts. While millions of consumers make legitimate payments and transactions, criminals take advantage of volume, urgency, and operational overload to carry out schemes that go unnoticed. You could say it’s the most wonderful time of the year, for organised crime.
December: the annual peak of fraud
The fear of fraud is real. 64% of consumers in the United States worry about becoming victims of online fraud during the holiday season. And it’s no coincidence: the massive increase in transactions, combined with understaffed teams and overloaded systems, creates the perfect storm. It’s like “looking for a needle in a haystack” while more needles keep falling in.
Money mule networks intensify their activity, using temporary job offers to recruit vulnerable individuals. Meanwhile, seemingly harmless methods, such as gift cards, remain a key channel for moving illicit funds due to their anonymity and ease of exchange.
Fraud alerts that blend into December
Modern detection systems rely on behavioural signals:
- Unusual transactions with no clear commercial purpose
- Customers insisting on dealing with a single employee
- Staff members having excessive control over a process
- Sudden changes in transactional patterns
During the holiday season, these indicators can easily be masked by legitimate activity, increasing the likelihood of going unnoticed. They’re not conclusive evidence, but they are important risk signals that must be analysed together with the broader context — especially at this time of year.
Christmas 2.0: AI-driven fraud
Holiday fraud in 2025 is defined by far more sophisticated uses of artificial intelligence. Santander UK warns of a wave of AI-generated fraudulent ads so convincing that 56% of adults fear that they or their relatives may fall for them. In addition, deepfakes impersonating celebrities are increasingly being used to promote fake offers and redirect users to fraudulent websites.
In essence, criminals are exploiting the same accessible technologies available to any user, tools for photo editing or video generation, but with criminal intent and alarming profitability: $485.6 billion in global fraud losses in 2023.
Cyberattacks have also risen by 47% between Q1 2024 and Q1 2025, often deployed days before major shopping events to take advantage of increased traffic and catch businesses and consumers off guard.
AML in survival mode: how to respond
To minimise risk during this critical season, financial institutions should reinforce detection capabilities using:
- Velocity analytics: spotting anomalous movements in seconds
- Geolocation: correlating transaction origin and destination
- Liveness detection: ensuring the legitimate user initiates the operation
- Money mule risk models: identifying behavioural and transactional patterns
In this context, advanced anti-fraud technologies are essential allies. Behavioural biometrics analyses more than 3,000 signals, from typing patterns to how a device is held, to detect anomalies imperceptible to traditional systems. And mule account detection creates a risk score that classifies accounts and stops fraud before it happens.
These solutions detect subtle deviations in user behaviour that traditional systems miss, preventing account takeover (ATO) and new account fraud (NAF) before any damage occurs.
Compliance: the factor that makes the difference
Technology is crucial, but effective prevention also requires a culture of ethical responsibility, strong internal controls, and regulations adapted to the modern fraud landscape.
Regulations such as AFASA in the Philippines are setting a precedent: banks must freeze suspicious funds or reimburse victims. Negligence in AML now costs banks millions per violation.
The surge in fraud during December isn’t a seasonal anomaly; it’s a reminder of how much prevention systems still need to evolve. While lights, shopping, and festivities distract millions, fraudsters find the perfect opportunity. That’s why companies can’t simply react — they need to anticipate.