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MEXICO CITY: A week after Pedro Figueroa borrowed 10,000 pesos ($500) from Jose Cash, a popular Mexican lending app, the barrage of online abuse began.
A slew of WhatsApp<\/a> messages swamped his phone, threatening harm - to him and his reputation -if he did not pay.
Figueroa had borrowed the money to tide him over a rough patch, but was soon caught in a cycle of debt and extortion as the app sent ever more menacing messages, including a threat to send a doctored image to all his contacts labeling him a pedophile.
To pay down the debt and escape the stress, 34-year-old Figueroa turned to other digital apps to borrow more money, and in three months, had racked up debts of $75,000 across 27 apps.
All of which pushed him to contemplate suicide.
\"I fell into a deep hole of anxiety because of these apps,\" Figueroa, an IT specialist, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, using a pseudonym for fear of further reprisals.
Figueroa is one of more than 2,230 people who fell prey to fraudulent loan apps<\/a> in Mexico between June 2021 and January 2022, according to data compiled by the Citizen Council for Justice and Security, an advocacy group based in Mexico City.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation found 29 loan apps with millions of downloads in the Google Play Store<\/a> that have been reported to the authorities for extortion, fraud, violation of Mexican privacy law, and abusive financial practices.
\"We take this issue very seriously and are committed to providing a secure platform for billions of Android users. We have already implemented measures against more than a dozen apps and will continue to investigate,\" a spokesperson for Google<\/a> wrote to the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The explosion of predatory lending apps in Mexico is part of a global trend that authorities have struggled to contain.
A Reuters investigation last year found dozens of lending apps in India that violated Google's own policies against short-term loans.
Investigators in Kenya launched a probe last year into possible data privacy<\/a> violations by mobile lenders, while regulators in the Philippines have flagged dozens of mobile lending apps as being in violation of local laws.
BIG EASY CASH<\/strong>
Figueroa downloaded Jose Cash at the end of March, lured by the app's promise of a quick loan with no credit checks.
The app boasts more than a million downloads and a rating of 4.8 out of 5 on Google Play Store.
\"What drew me to it was its ranking and amount of downloads. It also had an attractive message saying it would lend you up to $20,000 in under five minutes,\" said Figueroa.
Like most of the apps surveyed for this article, Jose Cash has thousands of similar, five-star reviews written in broken Spanish, all praising the app's interest rates and speed of approval.
The moment Figueroa downloaded the app, he inadvertently agreed to grant it access to his contacts list, call history, camera, location, SMS messages, social media accounts, and browsing history.
To register for a loan, he also provided personal information - full name, address, a picture of his national ID and bank account number.
The app also had information of the phone including the IMEI number, year, model, and WiFi connection.
\"It was unclear to me then how my information would be used,\" said Figueroa.
The 29 apps reviewed for this article all collect sensitive information that experts say exceeds what federal law allows.
Most loan apps tote a similar line in privacy policies - all invalid even if the user agrees to share their data, said Dafne Mendez, founder of consulting group Privacy Watchers. \"Why do loan apps need access to the user's contacts list or their pictures? It is not really necessary for their purpose,\" she said. \"What they are doing is abusive, illegal, and not allowed under any situation under the law.\"
Jose Cash did not respond to requests for comment.
Representatives of two apps investigated for this article denied any wrongdoing and said loan apps possibly related to crimes have used their companies' logos and names to impersonate them.
HARD CONDITIONS<\/strong>
A mix of economic crisis, financial exclusion and ready access to the internet has driven thousands of Mexicans to illegal microlending apps, a trend only exacerbated by COVID-19.
\"During and after the pandemic there was an absence of economic activity that created hard conditions for people,\" said Salvador Guerrero, president of the Citizen Council of Security and Justice, a civil society organization that provides free legal services to crime victims in Mexico.
\"These generated the conditions for the illegal crime market.\"
According to the official 2021 Survey on Financial Inclusion, 42% of adults in Mexico do not use any financial service, while over half of them work in the informal sector so cannot access formal credit.
On the other hand, 84 million Mexicans have access to the internet and 96% use a smartphone, data showed.
Figueroa had his 10,000-pesos loan request approved within five minutes on Jose Cash. The fine print said the money had to be repaid in seven days under an annual interest rate of 360%.
Of the 10,000 Figueroa requested, he received 5,500 pesos.
By the end of the week, he was being harassed to pay back the full amount. He received, via WhatsApp, an image of his face edited into a poster that read \"Wanted for raping a minor\", which was sent to his contacts and social media.
He also received images of dismembered bodies which made him fear for his wife and children, while one of his friends was sent a graphic rape video with threats against his family.
\"Panic, fear and shame came over me. I reached a point in which I started thinking of suicide, I wanted to stop it all,\" said Figueroa.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation reviewed screenshots of pictures sent to other borrowers, in which their faces were edited into graphic images with text claiming they were pedophiles, sex workers or wanted criminals.
Besides extortion and fraud, such aggressive tactics to recover money break several Mexican laws against digital harassment and defamation, according to Mendez.
LEGAL LOOPHOLE<\/strong>
Lending apps in Mexico operate in a legal loophole where they can offer loans without registering like regular financial institutions, said Eduardo Apaez, a banking and finance lawyer, and former Mexican financial regulator.
CONDUSEF, Mexico's regulator for consumer finance, has received more than 700 reports of doxxing - maligning an individual online - related to loan apps since January, but is powerless to act.
\"We have no jurisdiction or authority. We can only act on complaints against authorized financial services,\" said Oscar Rosado, president of CONDUSEF.
The Citizen Council for Justice and Security has helped victims file more than 170 reports to local police, and published a list of 130 loan apps that it said resorted to doxxing, extortion, fraud and other crimes.
None of these cases has been resolved.
At least 29 of those apps are still available in the Google Play store, the Thomson Reuters Foundation found.
Jose Cash was no longer visible - but the exact same product had appeared under a different name with the same unique Google app ID, privacy policy<\/a> and contact: SuenoCredy.
Warnings about the apps have come thick and fast - from inundated cyber police in several Mexican states and even from the country's president.
But to no avail.
\"There are no names, no addresses. They also use VPNs that complicate tracking,\" said Mendez. \"We have wonderful privacy laws and institutions, but how can we prosecute the crime if we don't even have a name?\"
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墨西哥城:一周后佩德罗·菲格罗亚借了10000比索(500美元)从穆现金,一个受欢迎的墨西哥的贷款程序,接二连三的在线滥用开始。
大量的WhatsApp消息淹没了他的电话,威胁伤害——他和他的名声——如果他不支付。
菲格罗亚借了钱给他渡过难关难关,但很快就陷入了债务和敲诈勒索的循环应用程序发送更多的信息,包括威胁篡改图像发送到所有他接触标记一个恋童癖。
偿还债务和逃避压力,34岁的菲格罗亚转向其他数字应用借更多的钱,在三个月,已经积累了75000美元的债务在27个应用程序。
所有这些促使他考虑自杀。
“我掉进了一个深孔的焦虑,因为这些应用程序,”菲格罗亚,IT专家,汤森路透基金会,使用假名,以免进一步报复。
菲格罗亚是超过2230人成了牺牲品,欺诈贷款程序在墨西哥2021年6月至2022年1月,由公民委员会数据显示为正义和安全,倡导组织位于墨西哥城。
汤森路透基金会发现29日贷款与数以百万计的下载应用程序谷歌播放存储已向当局举报进行敲诈勒索,诈骗,墨西哥违反隐私法,滥用金融实践。
“我们非常重视这个问题,致力于提供一个安全的数十亿Android用户的平台。我们已经实施了十多个应用程序和措施将继续调查,”发言人谷歌汤森路透基金会写道。
爆炸的掠夺性贷款应用程序在墨西哥是一个全球趋势的一部分,当局竭力遏制。
去年一项路透调查发现许多贷款应用程序在印度违反了谷歌自己的政策对短期贷款。
调查人员去年可能在肯尼亚发起了一项调查数据隐私违反移动银行,监管机构在菲律宾有标记几十个移动贷款应用是违反当地法律。
大容易现金
菲格罗亚下载何塞现金在3月底,吸引了这个应用程序的快速贷款承诺没有信用检查。
应用程序拥有超过一百万次的下载和评级为4.8 5在谷歌商店。
“吸引我的是它的排名和下载。它也有一个有吸引力的消息称这将借给你20000美元在五分钟,”菲格罗亚说。
像大多数接受调查的应用对于本文,何塞现金有数以千计的相似,五星级评论写蹩脚的西班牙语,所有赞美的应用的利率和速度批准。
目前菲格罗亚下载这个应用程序,他无意中同意授予访问他的联系人列表,叫历史,相机,位置、短信、社交媒体账户,浏览历史。
注册一个贷款,他也提供了个人信息,姓名,地址,一幅他的身份证和银行帐号。
手机的应用也有信息包括IMEI号码,模型,和无线网络连接。
“我不清楚如何将使用我的信息,”菲格罗亚说。
29日应用了本文所有收集敏感信息,专家说超过了联邦法律允许。
携带大多数贷款应用程序类似的线在隐私政策——所有无效,即使用户同意分享他们的数据,咨询集团的创始人Dafne门德斯说,隐私观察者。“为什么贷款应用程序需要访问用户的联系人列表或他们的照片吗?他们的目的不是必要的,”她说。“他们在做什么虐待,非法的,和在任何情况下不允许法律。”
何塞现金没有回应记者的置评请求。
代表两个应用研究对于本文否认有任何不当行为,并说贷款应用程序可能与犯罪用他们公司的标志和名称来模仿他们。
艰难的条件
经济危机、金融排斥和准备上网导致成千上万的墨西哥人非法小额贷款应用程序,COVID-19只能加剧趋势。
“大流行期间及之后有一个缺乏经济活动创造了条件的人,”萨尔瓦多·格雷罗州说,总统的公民安全理事会和正义,公民社会组织在墨西哥向犯罪受害者提供免费法律服务。
“这些市场产生违法犯罪的条件。”
根据官方金融包含2021年的调查,42%的成年人在墨西哥不使用任何金融服务,而超过一半的人在非正式部门工作所以不能访问正式的信贷。
另一方面,8400万年墨西哥人使用智能手机访问互联网和96%,数据显示。
菲格罗亚他10000比索贷款请求批准在5分钟穆现金。小字说这笔钱必须以每年360%的利率下七天。
10000年菲格罗亚的请求,他收到了5500比索。
年底,他被骚扰偿还全部金额。通过WhatsApp,他收到他的脸的图像编辑成一个海报,上面写着“通缉强奸未成年人”,被送到他的人脉和社会媒体。
他还获得了肢解尸体的照片使他担心他的妻子和孩子,而他的一个朋友被一个图形的强奸视频威胁他的家人。
“恐慌、恐惧和羞辱了我。我到达一个点,我开始考虑自杀,我想停止这一切,”菲格罗亚说。
汤森路透基金会进行的截屏图片发送给其他借款人,他们的脸被编辑成图形图像与文本声称他们是恋童癖,性工作者或通缉犯。
除了勒索和欺诈,这种激进的战术恢复资金打破几个墨西哥法律对数字骚扰和诽谤,门德斯。
法律漏洞
在墨西哥的贷款应用程序在一个法律漏洞,他们可以像普通金融机构提供贷款没有登记,爱德华多Apaez说,银行业和金融业的律师和前墨西哥金融监管机构。
CONDUSEF、墨西哥的消费金融监管机构,已经收到了700多份报告相关的阿霉素-诋毁一个人在线贷款应用程序自今年1月以来,但无权干涉。
“我们没有管辖权或权威。我们只能按照授权金融服务、投诉”CONDUSEF奥斯卡Rosado说。
公民委员会公正和安全帮助受害者文件超过170当地警方报告,并发表的130个贷款应用程序列表诉诸强力霉素,敲诈勒索,诈骗和其他罪行。
这些情况下已经解决。
至少有29的应用程序仍可以在谷歌商店,汤森路透基金会发现。
何塞现金不再是可见的,但同样的产品出现在一个不同的名称相同的独特的Google app ID,隐私政策和联系:SuenoCredy。
警告的应用已经频频——从淹没网络警察在墨西哥的几个州,甚至从这个国家的总统。
但无济于事。
“没有名字,没有地址。他们还使用vpn,复杂的跟踪,”门德斯说。“我们有很棒的隐私法律和制度,但是我们如何起诉犯罪如果我们甚至没有名字?”
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