U.S. Cracks Down on China-Linked Cyber Scam Networks in Southeast Asia

The U.S. Treasury has intensified its efforts to dismantle cyber scam networks operating NEAR the Thailand-Myanmar border, where crime gangs traffic hundreds of thousands of people into forced labor. Victims, lured by fake job ads, are trapped in debt and coerced into running online scams targeting unsuspecting individuals with bogus investments and fraud schemes.

Under Secretary John K. Hurley emphasized the dual threat these operations pose: "Southeast Asia’s cyber scam industry not only threatens the well-being and financial security of Americans, but also subjects thousands to modern slavery." The networks engage in money laundering, illegal gambling, and fraudulent investment platforms, often operated by trafficked foreigners under abusive conditions.

Among the targeted entities are nine companies and individuals linked to Shwe Kokko, a frontier town in Myanmar’s Karen State. The U.S. measures aim to sever financial flows to these networks, which thrive in areas controlled by militias and the junta. Recruiters at Shwe Kokko have been accused of luring victims with false job promises, only to trap and exploit them in forced scam operations.