Kids recruited via encrypted apps for crimes paying under $200
Some children as young as 13 are being recruited online by crime gangs for serious offences, often paid less than $200.
Organized crime networks are using encrypted messaging apps and social media to recruit young people to commit serious crimes including arson and murder. Payments are often far less than promised, sometimes under $200 for dangerous work.
In one recent case, children were offered $500 to carry out a firebombing but ended up paid less than $200. The ACIC describes this as a 'race to the bottom' where criminal networks drive fees lower to undercut each other.
The gangs use a 'crime-as-a-service' model that lets them distance themselves from offences while using kids as cheap labour. Young recruits often don't know the broader networks behind the jobs or the real risks they face.
Once they are no longer useful, the networks abandon them, leaving them facing arrest, harm, or worse.
- as young as 13
- Youngest age
- under $200 for dangerous work
- Typical payment
- encrypted messaging apps and social media
- Recruitment method
Why it mattersThis affects young Australians' safety and shows how easily criminals exploit vulnerable teenagers through platforms they use daily.
AustraliaAustralian authorities are working to disrupt these networks, but parents and young people need to understand how criminal gangs recruit through encrypted apps and social media.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 3 h ago
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