Industrial-scale cyberfraud operations are evolving and converging with the gaming industry across Southeast Asia, raising alarms among officials and law enforcement, alleges the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
In a recent meeting held by the UNODC in Bangkok, the organization claimed that transnational organized crime groups are heavily involved in sophisticated underground banking, money laundering, and illegal online gambling operations that have proliferated throughout the region.
“Organized crime groups are converging where they see vulnerabilities, and empowering the region’s investigators and analysts is central to UNODC’s strategy to disrupt these bad actors moving forward”, said Masood Karimipour, UNODC Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Hundreds of so-called ‘scam centers’ have been identified by authorities across Southeast Asia, where thousands of people have been trafficked into the lucrative illicit industry. Many more have lost billions to sophisticated fraud schemes orchestrated by a growing number of criminal groups who have made the region their base of operations.
In the Philippines alone, more than 400 of these criminal enterprises are estimated to be in operation, with many Philippines offshore online gambling operators (POGOs) found serving as fronts for transnational organized crime groups. This has led to a recent ban of the sector (will details still emerging on the scope) under Presidential order.
Similar measures have been taken elsewhere in the region, including in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand, where dismantling cyber-enabled fraud and illegal online casino operations has been declared a national priority.
However, as law enforcement and regulators step up their efforts, organized crime continues to diversify operations into more remote parts of the region, such as autonomous territories controlled by non-state armed groups and other criminal hubs.
“Cyber-enabled fraud perpetrated by powerful transnational criminal networks has evolved into a thriving multi-billion-dollar illicit industry that now exceeds the GDP of several countries in Southeast Asia combined”, said John Wojcik, UNODC Regional Analyst.
The meeting of regional investigators and analysts has led to the formation of an informal network to expand cooperation and share operational outcomes and intelligence.
UNODC is also coordinating with regional authorities to intensify their efforts, including the establishment of an emergency response network.
