Laos Scam Factory to Catch Online Scammers Targeting You Online

The space within each fraud complex is divided into different criminal gangs, with teams of people from different countries, such as Vietnam and China, placed on different floors and given scripts to scam people who speak the same language. I have a task to do. Depending on what the scam is about, it could involve persuading people to play online casino games (but not cashing out) or using chat apps to lure people into high-yield digital investment platforms. . Every few months, the websites and apps used for fraud are taken down, and criminal groups switch to new sites with different names and designs, but with the same functionality. According to Hieupc, scammers find victims through social media or pay YouTubers to promote their platform.

Some people who work in these fraud centers choose to scam strangers for a living, but crime bosses procure enough workers willing to carry out the scams. I find it very difficult and rely more and more. deceive people There are even fraudulent job advertisements and street kidnappings. In the sprawling complexes of Southeast Asia, many are now trapped in conditions of modern-day slavery and can be subjected to horrific treatment if they attempt to leave.

“With billions of dollars in revenues and sheltered havens in Southeast Asia, these ‘fraud factories’ have created a secondary industry of human trafficking to feed labor-intensive criminal enterprises, leading to mass torture, rape and rape. , and other abuses.” Santiago.

Hieupc’s findings tell the same story. The Chinese and Taiwanese fraud bosses carrying out these operations are “dangerous and evil,” he says. They exploited simple people looking for legitimate jobs, locked them in their premises, forced them to work from 8am to 11pm every day, and beat and threatened them if they did not earn enough money. increase. Trying to go outside is also very dangerous. Last year, a 25-year-old Vietnamese man who secretly helped Hiepc hack into a management system and stop fraudulent activities from within was able to escape by jumping out of a window, but in the process. broke his leg. In January 2021, a group of trafficking victims in Vietnam Occur Some said they managed to escape from a complex in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

some experts Quote In Cambodia, thousands of people have been detained against their will and forced to work as fraudsters. However, our visits to some of the large and sprawling sites known to be used for online fraud in Cambodia and Laos show that these figures may be the tip of the iceberg. . Secluded and heavily guarded complexes (casino enclaves called King’s Romans), such as Laos’ Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (GTSEZ), are lined with newly constructed skyscrapers surrounded by barbed wire. I was shown to be lined up with for scammers. Clothes hanging in all the windows suggested that these buildings were fully occupied. So this he said, at just one site, the number of people in modern slavery could reach tens of thousands.

Meanwhile, a similar story, big scam operation It recently emerged from a mega-casino town carved out of the Myanmar jungle. In Cambodia alone, according to media reports and reports by survivors, rescuers and Thai authorities, workers were forced into repurposed casino hotels, sprawling dormitory buildings, and other buildings around the country, including the gambling hub of coastal Sihanoukville. Packed in an isolated office block. Border towns of Thailand and Vietnam such as Poipet and Bavet. And new hubs like the sleepy tourist destination Kampot are being identified all the time. Given the scale of these sites, hundreds of thousands of people may be forced to work in fraud centers. That means millions more people in Australia and around the world could become targets of financial fraud.

“Malicious cyber activity against Australians is increasing in frequency, scale and impact,” said a spokesperson for the Australian Federal Police in Cambodia, adding that AFP is actively cooperating with Cambodian law enforcement. It added that it was working on cross-border crime such as cybercrime. AFP is increasingly seeing victims of human trafficking recruited and exploited using the internet and his digital platforms, he said. Meanwhile, fraud groups launder their profits online via cryptocurrencies, “making it easier for traffickers to receive, hide and move large sums of money,” he said. Lower risk of detection. ”

However, local police and government officials appear to be afraid or unwilling to close these businesses.

The owners of these casino hotels and compounds tend to be very well-connected. Take the KB Hotel in Sihanoukville, where the survivors live, for example. Say They were trafficked and sold to online fraud companies. directed by Chen Al Len is a business associate of the prime minister’s nephew, Hun To, and is listed as a co-director of three companies. Heng He (Cambodia) Commercial Bankregistered in Phnom Penh, and Heng He Ju Long Town Real Estate When Heng Zuan Yule (Ju Long Town), Both are close to Babette.Chen Arlen too report A newly arrived employee in June who would be co-owner of Bavett’s Heng He Casino was found hanged inside.However, with Cambodia melbourne, We have no direct stake in either KB or Heng He Casino.

According to some Cambodian police, claim Because the workers signed the contract (despite committing a crime), the boss is not binding them, they simply “won’t allow them to leave” – ​​or if the workers Even companies that owe money or time left in the contract. have the right to detain them.Minister of the Interior neglected Recent rescue efforts to resolve “labor disputes”.

Other governments have tried to intervene, but with limited success. April, Thai police made a raid At a series of locations in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, local police accompanied them. Thai authorities wanted to rescue up to 3,000 Thais believed to have been tricked into being hired by scammers and held against their will. Due to local corruption and resistance on the Cambodian side, they managed only 66 people, according to a statement by the Thai police themselves. Instead, the Thai had to spend eight hours negotiating with the Chinese owner. pay $1500 Only 24 workers trapped inside are allowed to be retrieved.

Some countries that have been heavily targeted by both traffickers and scammers are making efforts to educate their home populations about the risks. In Thailand, posters on the Golden Her Triangle ferry to Laos, a popular route for young people tricked into working for scammers based in casino towns in Laos, warn them not to be fooled by fake job ads. is affixed. China It also stepped up public education efforts to prevent scammers from targeting its own citizens, one result of which is that Chinese scammers have shifted their focus to other countries, including Western countries. That’s what I did. Also, in order to target English speakers, it is necessary to secure workers who can speak English.

“The combination of China’s stringent COVID restrictions and the Chinese government’s public education on this has made it much more difficult for these criminals to traffic Chinese into these fraud and scam zones abroad. says Tower. “As a result, criminals are now truly global, targeting victims both locally and internationally.”

But the most effective weapon against organized crime groups perpetuating fraud and abusing workers is simply to penalize their activities. In other words, raise awareness about the prevalence and dangers of online and phone fraud, and educate people on how to spot the signs to avoid giving money in the first place. Searchable List of thousands of known scam sites. This means that prospective investors can check the sites and links they use to make sure this has not already been identified as a scam. Many of the sites on GASO’s list are clearly aimed at Australian targets, including fake investment sites with names like “AUSFOREX” and “AUSTRALTRADE”.

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These efforts will only succeed if the people targeted by the scam are willing to come forward and explain what happened to them. According to Scamwatch, 13% of Australian victims report it. Without this information, moving forward to protect victims of fraud and human trafficking becomes a nearly impossible task. It is important to understand that for anyone caught by a fraudulent company, this is nothing to be ashamed of. These are sophisticated multi-million dollar operations dedicated to manipulating people around the world. Scams, nightmares could be much worse.

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