IOM Warns of Multibillion-Dollar Cyber Scam Trafficking in Asia

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned on July 28, 2026, that criminal networks are trafficking hundreds of thousands of people into forced online scam centers, primarily in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos. Director-General Amy Pope stated that victims from over 80 countries are lured by fake job advertisements on social media, specifically targeting tech-literate, English-speaking individuals with graduate degrees. Once they arrive, these workers are stripped of their identification and forced to execute fraud schemes through violence, debt bondage, and sexual abuse.

Data from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that scam operations across East and Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand generated between $88.3 billion and $114.1 billion in illicit proceeds in 2025. Between 2022 and 2025, the IOM assisted over 3,500 victims, noting that people from Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Bangladesh are among the most affected.

Amy Pope emphasized that survivors are often wrongly identified as criminals rather than victims of trafficking. Ahead of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons on July 30, the IOM is calling for increased international cooperation and investment in victim protection and reintegration to close the gaps exploited by these criminal networks.