Tom Kidwell, Co-Founder & Director of Ecliptic Dynamics highlights how the virtual marketplace of online gaming is enabling sophisticated networks to disguise illicit money through digital assets.
There are now an estimated 1.86 billion PC gamers in the world, with the global market estimated at $298.09 billion in 2024 and projected to reach $505.17 billion by 2030.
Online gaming has evolved into extensive digital ecosystems, one that merges social interaction, virtual economies and real-world monetary value.
From Roblox and Fortnite to League of Legends and CS:GO, these platforms host digital online stores where billions change hands through in-game currencies, skins and virtual items.
However, these digital stores have become attractive targets for criminals seeking to exploit this infrastructure for financial gain and now present an opportunity for money laundering.
Hidden behind avatars and alias’, criminals can use in-game purchases, currency exchanges and third-party trading sites to disguise the origins of illicit funds, converting dirty money into clean digital assets that are difficult to trace.
A recent lawsuit filed by the state of Louisiana alleged that Roblox, a game where its userbase is predominantly children, ‘is overrun with harmful content and child predators’ forcing the game’s owners to issue a statement revealing that it would be updating policies on ‘romantic and sexual content’ to prohibit even material that simply ‘implies’ sexual activity.
Yet concerns around explicit or predatory behaviour are only part of a much larger problem.
The combination of virtual currencies and anonymous user accounts creates an environment that is highly susceptible to financial crime on a global scale.
This poses a huge issue for regulators, platform owners and law enforcement.
In the UK alone, the National Crime Agency estimates that over £100 billion is laundered every year through the UK or through UK corporate structures.
In 2023/24, there were 1,483 money laundering prosecutions, highlighting both the scale and persistence of the problem.
Criminal networks often buy and sell in-game currency or rare items to obscure the origin of illicit funds, trading skins or loot boxes anonymously and leveraging peer-to-peer or third-party marketplaces to convert virtual assets back into cash.
Another tactic widely used is simply moving game currency through a chain of accounts owned by members of a criminal organisation, this creates a web of transfers that obscures the funds’ origin.
Often times, these criminals will hack into legitimate user’s accounts to carry out this illegal activity, further disguising their identity.
Although most platforms explicitly forbid using their economies to launder funds, these terms are difficult to police with external trading sites and anonymous accounts making enforcement practically impossible.
In 2019, the scope of the problem became clear in CS:GO, one of the world’s most popular multiplayer shooters, when its developer, Valve, suspended the trading of certain in-game items after discovering that nearly all of these trades were linked to a global money-laundering operation.
Similarly, in 2023, it was revealed that over 300 Roblox users were allegedly laundering money by using in-game currency to purchase fictitious virtual goods, according to a proposed settlement submitted in San Francisco federal court.
While most players engage with gaming platforms safely and legitimately, users can unknowingly become entangled in criminal activity, either as victims or as the middleman.
Offers that seem too good to be true can often be attempts to launder funds or scam players.
Suspicious friend requests, unsolicited offers to buy virtual goods, or being asked to transfer currency between accounts should all raise red flags.
Users must take steps to keep their accounts secure and prevent unauthorised access by hackers.
This is particularly important given that a large proportion of these games’ user base are children and young people, who may not fully understand the risks.
Parents therefore play a crucial role in ensuring their child’s accounts are protected by setting up multi-factor authentication (MFA), using strong, unique passwords and enabling platform-specific privacy features.
It’s also important to be cautious around friend requests from strangers or offers that seem suspicious or too good to be true that could be linked to illicit activity.
By remaining cautious and protecting their accounts, users can help prevent their profiles from becoming a channel for financial crime.
Gaming companies must take a more proactive approach to tackling money laundering across their platforms.
Improving and making player identity verification more robust is a great way to start.
This would make it much harder for criminals to cover their tracks and significantly reduce the likelihood of financial crime.
It could also assist regulators in identifying criminals more effectively.
Real-time monitoring of microtransactions can help detect irregular transaction patterns that might indicate money laundering or fraud.
When combined with web isolation technologies, this monitoring can be carried out in a secure, contained environment, allowing security teams to analyse suspicious behaviour without exposing internal networks or compromising sensitive data.
With billions of players, vast in-game and third-party marketplaces and real monetary value attached to digital assets, online gaming has become both a potential frontier for financial crime.
Criminals are leveraging emerging technologies and platforms to develop increasingly sophisticated methods of cyber fraud and money laundering.
Addressing this challenge requires collaboration across gaming companies and users alike.
Game developers must invest in stronger identity verification, transaction monitoring and cybersecurity infrastructure.
And users, particularly younger players and their parents, should remain alert to suspicious activity and the importance of basic cybersecurity hygiene.
