Around 7,000 people rescued from illegal call centers in Myanmar are awaiting transfer to Thailand amid a crackdown on cross-border scam operations, Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Wednesday.
The crackdown is part of growing regional efforts to combat cyber scams run by criminal syndicates in Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, which have forced thousands into fraudulent online schemes. Thailand is a key transit point for victims trafficked to these compounds.
Many of those trapped in the operations — primarily from China, Thailand, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian nations — are forced to run scams such as romance fraud, cryptocurrency swindles and fake investment schemes.
China and Thailand have long pressed Myanmar to dismantle these networks, but ongoing political instability and the involvement of armed groups have hindered efforts.
Earlier this year, China and Thailand agreed to establish a coordination center in Bangkok to combat cyber fraud. In February, Thailand cut power to three areas in Myanmar known as scam hubs, while Chinese security officials visited the Thai-Myanmar border ahead of the expected repatriation of about 200 Chinese nationals.
A Myanmar ethnic militia said over the weekend that it was preparing to deport 10,000 people linked to cyber scams from its territory to Thailand. The deportations would be carried out in groups of 500 per day.
It remains unclear how the latest crackdown will impact scam operations. Past reports suggest criminal groups behind the schemes, which generate billions of dollars in illicit profits, have been able to relocate.
The United Nations estimates that scams targeting victims across East and Southeast Asia caused financial losses between $18 billion and $37 billion in 2023. It also said around 120,000 people had been trafficked into Myanmar’s scam networks, where they often face threats, torture and sexual violence.
Many victims are lured through fake social media job postings promising well-paid tech-related roles that require relocation.
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Daryna Antoniuk
is a reporter for Recorded Future News based in Ukraine. She writes about cybersecurity startups, cyberattacks in Eastern Europe and the state of the cyberwar between Ukraine and Russia. She previously was a tech reporter for Forbes Ukraine. Her work has also been published at Sifted, The Kyiv Independent and The Kyiv Post.
