[HacktionLab] [Ttfa-discuss] Issues with publishing bank details and direct debits.

[protag]

On Fri, 18 May 2012 14:18:28 +0100, Adelayde Skidmore
<adelayde at riseup.net>
wrote:
> Anyone else had similar experiences, or had a different story from their
> bank?
> 

Hi All

We had this at the 1in12, with our Co-op account.

We went through a whole drama trying to work out a palatable way to
receive internet donations for our Fire Safety Emergency Work fund - the
only thing which didn't get blocked was putting our bank account details on
the front page of the website.

To be fair, we knew it wasn't foolproof (didn't Jeremy Clarkson do the
same thing, to prove a point in a column, and end up proving the opposite
point?) but we reasoned any income would exceed any fraud, and any fraud
would very likely be a problem for the bank more than for us.

All of the above turned out to be true: making it easy for people to give
us money worked brilliantly, but there were also bogus direct debits which
the bank had to refund.

Amazingly (it seemed, at first) the items were traceable to identities:
RAC membership, mobile phones and car insurance etc.

But then I remembered how money laundering works: pay for something with
dodgy money, then cancel the transaction and direct the refund somewhere
else. So imaginary money pays for an item or service which is never
delivered, instead it sets up the scenario where a refund can be directed
to an imaginary identity, before the money moves on and gets laundered a
few more times.

Hey ho.

We need something like Paypal for activists but who's going to do that?

cheers

Protag