The tragic example of what is happening in Myanmar reminds us that the first warnings date back to 2021, but the spread of this form of crime is blindingly fast. Recent Interpol operations reveal an expansion of forced cyber fraud from Asia to Latin America to Africa. An unwanted globalization that has already caused Moroccan victims.
Dozens of Moroccans kidnapped in Myanmar. The information seems incredible. Yet, these Moroccans were found to be victims of criminal networks specializing in human trafficking operating in the border areas of Myanmar.
They fell into the hands of “a criminal organization that profits from cyber fraud and human trafficking, causing suffering on a large scale. These criminal networks, which run a campaign of terror against the people of Myanmar, are now also affecting populations around the world,” Yadanar Maung, spokesperson for the activist movement “Justice for Myanmar,” told Médias24.
Also contacted by Médias24, the team from “Cyber Scam Monitor,” which focuses on Southeast Asia, reported that they are aware of the situation of Moroccans being held in Myanmar, without being directly approached by them.
Alerted by a relative of a Moroccan victim, Cyber Scam Monitor could not pinpoint the exact location of the kidnapped Moroccan citizens.
“Unfortunately, for many people, the only way out of the scam is to pay ransom. Some people may be released if their government puts pressure on the Myanmar government, but this remains a challenge. The area where the Moroccans are held is controlled by armed groups affiliated with the military junta and is largely managed by these armed groups,” the same source said.
The speed at which this form of crime is spreading requires cooperation and a common international response. This is evident from the various reports of international organizations. These are consistent with the findings of Justice for Myanmar, which fights to expose the various forms of crime in Myanmar, particularly those linked to forced cyber fraud of which Moroccans are victims.
Although we hardly hear about this phenomenon, it is not new. It has worsened due to the pandemic and the precarious situations that ensued, making it easier for criminals to lure people in need.
In 2023, two years after the first warnings, international organizations began to become more active. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) prepared a report on “scam operations and online forced crime trade in Southeast Asia.”
Interpol itself sounded the alarm and conducted a major operation in the same year, revealing the rapid expansion of this form of crime.
First Warnings in 2021
In its “information paper,” the OHCHR reveals “the human rights concerns that have arisen since early 2021 following online fraud operations (…).”
“People who are traded online are forced into crime and are threatened (…). They are subjected to torture and cruelty, inhuman and degrading treatment, arbitrary detention, sexual violence, forced labor and other forms of labor exploitation, as well as a range of other forms of violence and abuse.”
According to this report, “online scam operations originated in the rise of casinos and online gambling in the Southeast Asia region. Gambling, especially online gambling, is officially prohibited to varying degrees in China, Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos. Since 2016, several attempts have been made to shut down such operations in the region, but in many cases, these attempts to combat them have simply caused them to move and adapt (…).”
The OHCHR even specifies that between 2014 and 2019, the number of online casinos in Cambodia increased by 163%, from 57 in 2014 to 150 in 2019.
“Scams aimed at robbing people also have a long history in the region; organized criminal groups have been active in fraud operations for over a decade, with a significant increase since 2016.”
In Myanmar, crime has worsened since the coup in February 2021. And the Covid-19 pandemic has also contributed to this. According to the OHCHR report, the pandemic and the associated response measures have had a significant impact on illegal activities in the region.
A Successful Pandemic
“Public health measures have closed casinos in many countries, and in response, casino operators have moved their operations to less regulated areas and increasingly lucrative markets in the online space.” Criminal groups have thus adapted to the new situation, especially since “fraud is a profitable industry worldwide.”
According to the figures in the report, “global scam revenues in 2021 amounted to $7.8 billion in stolen cryptocurrencies.”
“In Southeast Asia, reports suggest that scam centers generate revenues worth billions of US dollars,” notes the OHCHR, which also specifies that “the number of online victims in Southeast Asia is difficult to estimate due to its clandestine nature.” That said, “reliable sources indicate that at least 120,000 people across Myanmar are held in situations where they are forced to commit online scams.” In Cambodia, there are, “according to reliable estimates,” at least 100,000 victims of forced labor.
“Some of the victims are well-educated, sometimes already employed or holding higher or even postgraduate degrees, proficient in computers and multilingual,” specifies the report, which points to a change in the profile of target victims.
Illustration of the Effectiveness of Cooperation
In 2023, Interpol conducted an operation called “Storm Makers II” from October 16 to 20. And this, “after five months of coordinated investigations” by “more than 270,000 inspections and police checks,” carried out in “450 human trafficking and migrant smuggling hotspots.”
The results of this operation shed new light on the “globalization of cyber fraud centers.”
Notably, in June 2023, Interpol issued an Amber Alert to announce a global warning against human trafficking scams; precisely about “the system of kidnapping victims to force them to work in online scam centers.” The organization warned of what was developing from a “regional crime trend” to a “global threat.”
Later, during the execution of Operation Storm Makers II, Interpol managed to arrest 281 people for crimes including human trafficking, passport forgery, corruption, telecommunications fraud, and sexual exploitation; but also to rescue 149 human trafficking victims and open more than 306 investigations, many of which are still ongoing.
In Turkey alone, 239 smugglers were arrested during Operation Storm Makers II.
According to Rosemary Nalubega, Deputy Director of Vulnerable Groups at Interpol, “the human cost of cyber fraud centers continues to increase. Only concentrated action on a global level can truly prevent the globalization of this criminal trend. While most cases remain concentrated in Southeast Asia, Operation Storm Makers II provides further evidence that this method is spreading, that victims come from other continents, and that new cyber scam centers are emerging, even in Latin America.”
MEDIA24
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