The global scam industry’s size ranges from $70bn into the hundreds of billions – a scale that would put it on a par with the global illicit drug trade. And at its heart are scam centres.
Lawless border areas in south-east Asia have become particular areas of concern, with satellite imagery and research showing that scam operations have more than doubled along the Thai-Myanmar border since Myanmar’s junta seized power in 2021.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked and forced to work at scam compounds, with at least 120,000 people in Myanmar and 100,000 in Cambodia likely forced to work in the centres, data fromthe United Nations shows.
Rafqa Touma speaks to south-east Asia correspondent Rebecca Ratcliffe who has been to the Thai-Myanmar border to see the centres for herself.
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